In The Cards
by Raven and Writing Desks
Summary: All magic requires balance, a Matched pair to perform it. When Sakura discovers she has magical powers, she is transferred to Konoha's Academy for the Magically Gifted. Her world is turned upside down and she's Matched with the mysterious Sasuke Uchiha. To make matters worse, he wants nothing to do with her. She thought magic school was going to be more like Hogwarts… not this.
1. The Fool

**_The Fool_**

 _Upwards: Innocence, New Beginnings, Free Spirit_

 _Reverse: Recklessness, Inconsideration_

 _The fool inspires courage due to his understanding that every day is a chance to open up new areas of your life, with that comes a mixture of anticipation, wonder, awe, and curiosity._

* * *

 _Thump._

The container hits the counter top loudly, frozen solid. Smooth hands attempt to pry the lid from the ice cream carton, the hardness of the contents making it take quite an effort.

"Come on you son of a bitch," Sakura mutters to herself.

After more of the struggle and painstaking work of slender fingers, the lid gives way from the bottom of the container and the eighteen-year-old smiles greedily at her soon to be dessert. She grabs a spoon and begins stabbing the chocolaty treat only to be met with more frustration at the lack of the solid block giving way.

"Oh come on!" she exclaims, glaring at the ice cream and running irritated fingers through her pink hair.

Before she realizes what is happening, blue flames burst from the container, causing her to jump back and whack her head on the cabinets behind her.

"Mom!" Sakura yells, terrified by the demonic sweet. She's in shock, her brain unable to grasp the concept of a normal ice cream container undergoing spontaneous combustion. She stares at the dancing blue flames as the air turns rancid with the smell of burning sugar.

"Sakura? What's going on?" her mom calls from down the hall. "Oh my god!" Mebuki Haruno rushes into the kitchen with a look of pure horror on her face and throws the burning container into the nearby sink, dosing the flames in water.

"I'm sorry, I don't know what happened" Sakura begins muttering, still wide-eyed as she spies the scorched remains. "I'm so sorry, I don't know..."

"Sakura," her mother begins, resting calming hands on her daughter's petite shoulders, "Sak, calm down honey." She pauses for a moment, allowing her daughter to catch her breath. "Your father and I have something to tell you."

* * *

"Alright," a busty woman begins as she sets a large stack of cards on the table. "What you see before you is a deck of tarot cards that date back to the beginning of our kind-"

"Tsunade," the only other occupant of the room, a boy, interrupts, "is it really necessary to give me the entire introduction for a second time."

"It's tradition, Sasuke," she responds sympathetically, after all it is his second time facing the cards in under a year.

Sasuke's eyes narrow in annoyance, "Can we just hurry this up," he mutters impatiently, this is the last place he wants to be right now. The room is stuffy and the supply of lit candles is making him uncomfortably warm.

Tsunade rises from her chair, her honey-colored eyes burning with rage. Her sympathy only lasts to a certain extent, especially when disrespect for the traditions of their people is a factor.

"You listen here, Uchiha! Don't you dare think for one moment that you are the only one to have lost your Match." As her voice rises, so does the height of the flames behind her. "You are by far not the only one to have a tragic past in this academy and if you forget that for even a moment, I will personally make sure you're stuck cleaning up after conjuring class for the rest of the time you remain here."

Sasuke's face stays passive, his own thoughts buzzing with the events of the past couple weeks.

Before Tsunade can explode over his lack of resentment - moody teenagers will be the death of her - the door to the room cracks open and a man with long, dark hair pokes his head in.

"Lady Tsunade there is a woman on the phone," he states.

"I'll deal with it later," Tsunade snaps, her calm demeanor far gone. The past couple of weeks have been nothing but slews of phone calls questioning her about the unraveling of recent events.

"It's about her daughter being a potential candidate," he continues "As Hokage, you should go speak with her; I'll observe young Sasuke for you."

Tsunade takes a deep inhale before shooting one last glare at the stoic teenager and turning to the new occupant. "Thank you, Orochimaru."

She rises from her seat and switches places with the snake-like professor. The moment the door closes behind the departed woman, Orochimaru leans towards the boy, a wicked grin on his face.

"Now, Sasuke, I assume you know what to do," he gestures towards the deck of cards, "Concentrate."

It takes only a moment for the deck of cards to burst from the neat stack and flutter around the room as the boy vanishes without a trace.

* * *

The rumble of the train moving on its tracks jostles Sakura slightly as she flips through the packet that her mother had given her. Her mind rushes with the events of the past couple of days, her brain in information overload as the once thought impossible becomes her reality.

"It runs in the family and we always hoped that it would skip your generation like it did mine," Mebuki had told her daughter, once she had begun to calm down after the ice cream incident. "Konoha's Academy for the Magically Gifted is where many others of the Haruno family attended. They'll teach you what this all means and how to control it."

So, here she is flipping through the embellished card paper, reading the necessary information as she travels halfway across the country to her new school.

The flyer is filled with pictures of teenagers looking studious, with cheesy smiles on their faces as they do the simplest tasks. Frankly, it looks like any other expensive prep school flyer. She shudders thinking of how the kids in the pictures could probably turn her into a frog, or something like that. She is still learning the details of her new found abilities, but from what she's gathered so far, there is very little that magic cannot do.

She turns to the course listing within the pamphlet and that is where the mundanity of it ends. It lists classes that are perfectly normal: math, English, cooking, but then a few that are peculiar looking like conjuring, partner magic, basic shape shifting.

 _Shape-shifting? Are you serious? I feel like I'm being thrown into a loony bin._

She tries to imagine what situation would warrant her changing into an animal when the train lurches to a halt. She quickly stuffs the packet into her red backpack and retrieves the simple black duffle bag from the overhead container. Carefully maneuvering through the narrow walkways, she steps off the train, the light load making it easy to jump down the narrow steps onto the platform.

Barely two steps on the cement, a woman with cropped brown hair rushes up to her, taking the larger bag.

"You must be Sakura Haruno," she says before making a motion with her hands that sends the luggage into oblivion. The woman ignores Sakura's panicked facial expression as the girl looks around to make sure nobody else on the platform noticed the unnatural disappearance of the bag. Once Sakura realizes nobody acknowledged the strange behavior she nods her head slowly, trying to act like what just occurred was no big deal. This is her world now, time to act like she is a part of it.

"My name's Shizune and I'm the handler responsible for the girls at KA," she informs her before extending a hand to shake. Sakura hesitates and inspects the woman, she certainly doesn't look like a witch. Rather, her underwhelming assemble of a green dress and dark leggings gives off the vibe of a librarian of some sort.

Sensing that this woman is not somebody to be threatened by, Sakura reaches forward and gently grabs the woman's palm, only to be met with a feeling of the wind getting knocked out of her. Her eyes force shut and she gasps, trying to regain the oxygen she felt she lost. Once she musters the courage to open her eyes, she finds herself standing in a large entry hall. The ceiling rises high with an impressive crystal chandelier hanging down and the surrounding walls don a brilliant white.

Emerald eyes widen as her brain tries to process what just happened. One second she was on the train platform and now she's standing in the center of a circle drawn on the floor in what appears to be chalk. Her stomach begins churning as her head swims with dizziness.

"Take a couple of deep breaths, teleportation can jostle you."

Sakura's head whips around to locate the speaker. She finds a masked man with spikey silver hair, hands comfortably resting on Shizune's shoulders.

"Hello," he greets, the outline of a small smile forming beneath a mask that covers the whole bottom half of his face, "I'm Kakashi Hatake, the handler for the boys here."

"Um, uh huh" Sakura nods her head dumbly, not really digesting his words as Shizune seemed to have forgotten to teleport Sakura's commonsense. She eyes their proximity and familiar touches warily, feeling as though she's intruding upon something.

"Well," Shizune begins as she wiggles out of Kakashi's grasp, a blush appearing on her cheeks at Sakura's scrutinizing. The girl just continues to gape at the expansive foyer around her, as well as the rune-like shapes on the floor around her. Shizune clears her throat to ease some of the awkwardness of the situation and continues speaking. "Your bag is up in your room, along with your new roommate who will take you to Lady Tsunade's office. Just go up these stairs, continue down the hall a ways, and it's the first door to the right."

Hesitantly, Sakura moves away from the couple, half-expecting to be whisked away against her will again, and begins climbing the grand staircase that rests in the very center of the foyer. She forces herself to take deep breaths with each step, her façade of composure broken as she tries to convince herself that this is all a strange dream.

Taking the route she was instructed through the grand hallway, she finds herself facing a door. Now, there is nothing spectacular about the door, in fact, it is rather plain, painted white, average height, smooth and engraving free. It's what lies behind the door that intimidates the pink-haired girl.

Roommate.

That word gives her the chills.

 _A witch as a roommate. What if she curses me or something? But, I guess I'm a witch too._

A sense of nausea washes over her as the reality settles in.

Witch, magic, broomsticks…

Plucking up her courage, Sakura turns the knob and pushes the door open, only to find how normal it all really is.

There are two beds leaned up against opposite walls with desks sitting adjacent to them. A large open window in the center of the back wall blows a set of wispy curtains. A pretty girl with long legs reclines on one of the beds accompanied by a dark-haired boy. Both of them stare at Sakura expectantly.

"Uh," Sakura begins lamely, "I'm Sakura Haruno. I guess I'm your new roommate."

"Oh right!" the girl says before leaping off the bed, her hair flowing through the air like a platinum waterfall. "I'm Ino Yamanaka and this," she gestures to the boy, "is Sai."

"Uh, hi," Sakura extends her hand towards the girl in greeting, but baby blue eyes simply stare at it. So much for trying to be friendly.

"I recommend not offering your hand quite so readily around here," Ino tells her. "Skin-to-skin contact has a sense of vulnerability to it. So, unless you're willing to let others see all your deepest darkest secrets, I recommend investing in some gloves."

This causes the pinkette to jerk her hand back and begin subconsciously rubbing it with the other one.

"Anywho," Ino continues "Sai and I our Matches so you'll probably be seeing a lot of him around."

The boy waves awkwardly, an unsettling smile on his face. Sakura just raises her hand slightly in response, not quite understanding what that means. She shrugs off her backpack and sets it on the opposite bed that houses her previously transported duffle bag.

"Speaking of which," the girl quickly states, "I'm supposed to get you to Tsunade."

Ino begins pushing Sakura right back out the door she had just come through as a soft chuckle from Sai follows them out.

"Wait, so are you two dating?" Sakura begins as Ino continues navigating them through the large hallways.

"Oh heavens no," the blonde says with a laugh. "Sai doesn't play for our team if you catch my drift. I'm actually dating this other guy named Shikamaru, but he's Matched up with a chick named Temari," her blue eyes narrow in anger. "She rigged those cards, frizzy haired freak," Ino finishes, seeming to speak more to herself than Sakura.

Sakura doesn't exactly follow any of the other girl's words, so she just remains silent, nodding as if this is all perfectly normal. Realizing that her confusion is probably going to get worse before it gets better, she settles for taking in her surroundings. She finds herself admiring the artwork that lines the hallways: painted portraits of different regal looking couples along with pictures that almost look like scenes from a prop heavy ballet. As they continue down the hall, she finds it odd that there are no other students or teachers walking through the corridors. It's almost like she and Ino are completely alone in the expansive building.

"So, anyways, this is Tsunade's office," the blonde says offhandedly "She's the current Hokage which basically means that she's like the Witch Queen." She moves closer and whispers in Sakura's ear, "but don't get on her bad side, she's nicknamed the Bitch Queen because of her temper."

The double doors that are, once again, plain white and rather dull, swing open by themselves and Ino quickly shuts her mouth.

"Thank you for that introduction, Ino," a tense voice says from within causing the blonde-haired girl to pale slightly. A very busty woman emerges from the room and rests her honey-colored eyes on Sakura.

"Welcome to KA Miss Haruno," Tsunade states, seeming slightly distracted. "Ino, can you take her to the room? I have to finish up something but I'll be along shortly." With that the doors shut, leaving Sakura muddled by the awkwardness of that introduction.

The girls walk down more empty corridors and by now Sakura's chest is tight with anxiety of the unknown. Ino babbles away about something or another, but the new student has tuned her out.

Suddenly, the sound of footsteps echoes down the corridor as a boy with dark spikey hair turns the corner and begins walking towards them. Almost as if in slow motion, Sakura's eyes lock with his as he passes by them. Her stomach dose a flip as what she sees there, his eye are dark, endless, dead.

The second his footsteps are no longer audible, Ino leans forward. "Sasuke Uchiha," she informs Sakura in a hushed tone, "Old Magic in his family as well as more than their fair share of drama. He's kind of a big deal around here."

Remembering his appearance, Sakura can certainly see why. He is handsome with his aristocratic features and alabaster skin, more than that, he carries an aura of mystery.

"Everybody used to want him as their Match, until the _accident,"_ Ino continues.

"What accident?" Sakura asks, unease washing over her.

"A couple weeks ago he and his partner, Karin, were doing some sort of spell during the night. The next morning, Karin was dead and Sasuke was passed out, he didn't wake up for days."

Sakura's hands begin to tremble, nobody told her that dying was a possibility at this school. Just what kind of place was this?

"The teachers wouldn't tell us what spell they were trying to do, or what went wrong, and Sasuke still won't speak to anybody about it," the blonde lets out a light scoff, "like that's anything new. Whatever they were doing, it was something dark," Ino continues hesitantly, "I saw some of the mediums they had used and one was a large python, it's stomach was split all the way down the middle and blood was all over the floor." She shudders in emphasis. "Anyways, that's the reason we aren't allowed to room with our Matches anymore," she sounds a bit regretful. "Sai was such a good roommate too."

"Wait," Sakura interrupts Ino's musings. "Somebody died? What are Matches? What the hell is going on?" She can't stop the rush of questions as her fear finally causes the dam keeping her anticipation at bay to burst.

Ino lets out a little laugh at Sakura's outburst, "Oh right, you were raised by normal people," she avoids Sakura's questions with another awkward chuckle causing the pink-haired girl to become frustrated with the fact that she didn't actually answer her. "Don't worry, Tsunade will explain everything." Ino opens another door and gestures inside. With a quick wink and a puff of smoke, the blonde girl disappears, leaving Sakura by herself.

She wanders into the room which is eerily lit by a slew of black and red candles lining the walls. A simple black armchair rests directly in the center, facing a wooden table with a dark pile of something resting on top of it.

"Take a seat Miss Haruno."

Sakura leaps at the voice of the Hokage. She did not see the woman at first as she stands in the shadows next to the table. Sakura does as instructed, trying to figure out how the woman got here before them.

"What you see before you is a deck of tarot cards that dates back to the beginning of our kind." Tsunade begins as she straightens the deck of black and gold backed cards. "Magic is not as it is portrayed in the media. It is a matter of balance. While one is able to conduct simple spells on their own, a pair is needed to prevent any unsavory consequences." Tsunade begins fiddling with one of the many necklaces adorning her neck.

"Each possessor of magic has a Match, a perfect complement of the opposite sex that will balance them out. Magic conducted solo is harmful to the user and much more difficult to control, but a Match allows you to adapt each other's powers to make controlled spells of far greater power," she pauses for a moment. "These cards will show us who your destined Match is."

Sakura eyes the cards across the room. They must be a pretty big deal if they're going to show her who she's "destined" to be with. This school just keeps getting more and more confusing, there was nothing about finding your soulmate in the pamphlet. "So what do you want me to do exactly?" Sakura asks at Tsunade's expectant look.

"Pick a card."

Sakura begins to rise from the chair, but Tsunade lets out a "tut tut", and waggles her finger. "Pick a card from there."

"How am I suppose to do that?" Sakura exclaims. She has only found out about magic a little over a day ago, and didn't Tsunade just say something about performing magic alone is dangerous?

"Concentrate on the cards," the blonde woman says cryptically.

Rolling her eyes at the thought that this all seems to come out of a bad movie, Sakura stares down the deck of cards. She stares and stares and stares. Her eyes strain and she can't help feeling like an idiot for doing this. Maybe she isn't cut out for this strange world of magic.

Right when she feels as if nothing would happen, that her parents would walk in and tell her this was all an elaborate joke, the cards seemingly explode, sending them floating through the air. Startled green eyes look up at the floating illustrations only to see flashes of scenery moving before her as if she's peering out the window of a moving vehicle. She can only make out a few images.

 _A man sitting up in bed, crying, as nine swords sprout from his back,_

 _Women chained to the throne of winged, horned man,_

 _A snake twisting around the body of a youth,_

 _Gold coins falling from the sky…_

The images begin to slow and Sakura suddenly finds herself standing in darkness. This isn't normal darkness, no, it is as if she is in a field where the grass has been dyed black and the sky is drained of all starlight. A large moon hangs upon the horizon, offering little light despite its great size. It's a pale circle of nothingness, void of the craters that typically give it texture.

Her skin begins to crawl as she gets a sense that she is no longer in the world she belongs to. Unease begins gnawing at her stomach as a silhouette of a cloaked humanoid figure flickers into sight, standing in front of the poor imitation of the moon. This is definitely not Konoha.

It turns to her as wicked looking scythe appears out nothingness. Hands belonging to a skeleton reach from the cloak and grasp the weapon. The blade shines in the moon light, almost taunting her with its silver smile. The chilling figure's head turns toward her and Sakura finds herself staring at the pearl coloring of bone that has been picked clean. The skull, though it has no eyes, stares straight at her, beckoning her forwards.

All logic screams at her to run away, to hide from the very bringer of death. However, her body moves forward, following an unspoken promise of something she cannot put a name on. With each step her feet take, she feels unadulterated terror wrapping tightly around her chest. Her breaths become rapid and inconsistent, as if even the oxygen in this horrifying world is turning against her.

The palm of the reaper remains outstretched to her and Sakura gasps in horror as her own treacherous body reaches a hand out to join the ossein-like limb. Then she is gasping, crying out as a black fire seems to consume her fingertips that were only a moment ago touching the smooth coolness of bone. She screams, tears streaming down her face as her body forces her to remain still. She has never experienced a pain this excruciating, she would sell her very soul if it means it would stop.

"That's enough!"

Sakura hears Tsunade's voice echo around the cruel, dark world before her body, back in her control, falls slack and consciousness leaves her.

* * *

"This is troubling indeed," a man with long, white hair states as he fiddles with a trinket absentmindedly.

"I think the answer is obvious," Orochimaru declares calmly, the professor sits proudly in one of the wooden chairs within the Hokage's office.

"What's so obvious about this situation?" Tsunade yells as she slams her fists on the desk, causing all manner of jars and charms to shake with the force.

"The same happened with Sasuke, minus the crying of course," the snake-like man reminds her. "He seemed rather accepting at being pulled into Death."

"This type of thing has never happened before, and now twice in one week?" Tsunade blows a stray piece of hair out of her face as she begins storming around the room. She has gone through every form of literature available to her about the forsaken card, yielding no results.

"A student being pulled into the cards during their Match Test is rare, but the Death card, that's just unheard of."

"Thank you for stating the obvious Jiraiya, you've been a big help," the only woman in the room mutters sarcastically as she continues pacing. A pregnant pause follows while Tsunade's frustration continues mounting.

"Match them," Jiraiya offers causing Tsunade to stop pacing and turn her head in his direction fast enough to get whiplash.

"Are you out of your goddamn mind?" she exclaims. "To put two with such unheard of amounts of power together when _he_ is beginning to make an appearance again. Are you already forgetting what happened a couple of weeks ago?"

"A student died, how could I forget that?" Jiraiya retorts. "But you can't deny the fact that this means they are indeed Matches of the highest caliber. "And if _he_ really does decide to show up again, we will need them on our side," he finishes. A typical test of the cards consists of one of the ancient illustrations to fly into a students hand, choosing them. Students that receive the same card are Matched, it's as simple as that. Very few that are highly attuned to their energy have been pulled into the other realm, but only momentarily.

"And what side is that, Jiraiya." Orochimaru cuts in, "You are a 'wandering sage' as you so like to call yourself. What happens if _he_ emerges while you're off chasing after women?"

"That brings me to my next point," Jiraiya glances at Tsunade who has begun drinking sake straight from the ceramic bottle she stashes in her desk. "I'm returning to KA for good and will resume my previous status as resident professor." The Hokage chokes a bit on her alcohol at Jiraiya's words. Ignoring her antics, he continues, "And as professor, I vote that we allow Sasuke Uchiha and Sakura Haruno to carry out their Matched bond and study as a pair."

* * *

Sakura's mind is foggy, her entire body feels heavy and weak, but the sensation of somebody touching her hand brings back the memories. The cards, the figure, black fire. She wants to go back to sleep, to pretend like nothing happened. However, reality is that somebody is in her room and they're paying particular attention to her injured hand.

Her eyes flutter open only to be met with midnight pools that remind her of the world she had been sucked into. She jumps back from her visitor only to be stopped by the headboard of the bed. Confused, she looks around to find herself in an infirmary of sorts. As per the usual theme of the academy, everything is white, the curtains dividing her from the rest of the room, the floor tiles shining from frequent polishing, and the soft sheets covering her.

However, one thing does not look like the rest. The possessor of the midnight eyes is clad in dark jeans and an even darker T-shirt, hair reminiscent of raven feathers completing the dramatic contrast.

"Sasuke Uchiha?" she questions. What on earth is he doing here?

The boy doesn't respond, instead he silently takes her hand in his once again. She blushes slightly as he begins slowly unwrapping the gauze from around her fingers. Sakura wants to question him, but she's at a loss for words at the surprising tenderness of his actions. His own hands are clad in black leather gloves reminding her of Ino's earlier warning of getting herself a pair. At least she doesn't have to worry about the skin to skin contact.

When he removes the dressings from her hands, the black charred skin of her fingertips is revealed to her for the first time. She lets out a sound of anguish as she remembers the pain of the all-consuming fire. This prompts Sasuke to look up at her for a moment, his gaze blank and terrifying. His eyes lock with hers as he slips the glove from his own hand. This time, a startled gasp escapes Sakura's lips. An identical angry shade of black disfigures his pale skin as well, however, it travels past his fingers and up his wrist, marring his beautiful pale skin.

Sasuke glances at her once more before pressing his scarred hand to her own. She has an urge to jerk away as a strange cooling sensation washes over her heated skin, but Sasuke holds her in place muttering an almost silent "Watch."

It is an obvious demand, and Sakura obeys, observing their hands as the black scar begins to fade with the relieving sensation of healing. It ebbs away until only silvery spiderweb-like lines take its place.

The moment the last of the black disappears from Sasuke's skin, he pulls away from her and slips his glove back on. Pulling a similar pair from his pocket, he tosses them onto Sakura's lap.

"Tsunade says to keep quiet about what happened." His task complete, the strange boy pulls back the curtain and begins walking away.

"Wait!" she calls out causing him to turn around and stare at her with a bored expression, "I don't understand." Why was he the one to heal her? Does this mean he's her Match? Why isn't she allowed to tell people about what happened?

An unrecognizable emotion flashes through his eyes before he turns away once again, obviously eager to leave the situation. "Join the club."


	2. The Page of Wands

**_The Page of Wands_**

 _Upwards: exploration, excitement, freedom_

 _Reverse: lack of direction, procrastination, creating conflict_

 _This card indicates that there is something within you, something that triggers you to make discoveries, indulge in investments, or take the next advancement in life_

* * *

 _Pat pat pat_

Sakura turns her head at the sound of bare feet hitting the marble.

She has just left the infirmary, cleared by a medical specialist who informed her that the silver scars are now a permanent addition to her hand. The woman had seemed unperturbed when she came to check on Sakura only to find her hand completely healed of all damage. That idea of the scar does not bother the young girl much, she'll be wearing gloves most of the time anyways, but the danger of magic is becoming very apparent to her. First day and she ended up unconscious in the infirmary.

"You're lost" a quiet voice drifts across the hall from a bare-footed girl standing in the doorway Sakura was about to pass through.

"Umm…" the new student looks around only to realize that what the girl says is indeed true. She hasn't been in Konoha academy nearly long enough to distinguish one white hallway from another. "Yeah, I guess I am," she responds sheepishly.

Looking the girl up and down, she appreciates the overwhelmingly kind presence she admits. Her long hair is dark and pulled back into a loose braid. Soft lavender eyes, though they look at Sakura, appear as if they are seeing so much more than just a lost girl standing in the hallway. Sakura briefly acknowledges that this girl isn't wearing any gloves, maybe she is newer to the school as well.

"Nice to meet you, I'm –"

"Sakura Haruno," the girl finishes for her, not rudely, but as if this information is as clear as day to her. "I'm Hinata Hyuga." She pauses to give a welcoming smile, "Let me take you to your room."

"Thanks," Sakura replies, slightly confused as to what to think about this girl. As they make their way through the hallway, now dark from the sun having set, Sakura tries to make polite conversation.

"Who's your Match?" she asks since that seems to be one of the first things everybody talks about.

"Oh, I don't have one yet," she replies calmly. "Don't feel bad though, I have a feeling I'll meet him soon."

Sakura stays silent, she is still figuring out all the logistics of what a Match is, but she has concluded that the magical society seems to glorify it. Sakura begins contemplating the implications of not having a Match, does it make Hinata an outcast? She doesn't have time to dwell on it as a high-pitched humming noise snaps her from her thoughts.

"What's that?" Sakura asks, as she begins searching out the noise. Hinata withholds from responding, but her pale lavender eyes watch the new girl carefully.

Moving towards the smooth wall, Sakura notices the noise getting louder as if the sound is coming from beneath the plaster. She leans her ear against it and rubs her hand over the white paint. There's something different about this part of the hallway. "Hinata, what's on the other side of this wall?"

"Something bad," Hinata responds cryptically.

This startles Sakura slightly, causing her to quickly step away from the strange noise and scrutinize it's source. The brilliant white doesn't look any different from other hallways in the school, however, Sakura senses something there, almost as if there's a power radiating from it. From what she's gathered, this whole side of the school only contains dorm rooms. Could this be where that girl died? Why would they seal up the entire room?

"You're Matched to Sasuke Uchiha." Hinata interrupts before Sakura can voice her questions. She phrases as a statement rather than a question, but the pink-haired girl still feels the need to respond.

"Yeah," she rubs her gloved hand absentmindedly.

"Don't let the card ceremony scare you," Hinata begins, "what happened to you is not commonplace. Your magic is strong and powerful, when it's used by practiced hands, it will be capable of wonderous things."

"How'd you –" Sakura begins to question, Sasuke said that what happened was to stay quiet.

"Here's your room," Hinata smiles, "tell Ino to take an umbrella shopping tomorrow."

"Thank you," Sakura states, wary of the mysterious girl that is already walking away from her.

"So… how'd it go?" Ino asks before Sakura even fully enters the room.

"Fine," Sakura replies, wanting to change the subject. "Um… Hinata says to take an umbrella when you go shopping tomorrow."

"Ah," Ino says with a smile, "She's so sweet, poor thing isn't Matched yet though." The blonde begins scribbling on a small piece of paper. She folds the sheet over and over again until it's so small, it disappears.

"A thank you note for our little clairvoyant," she states with a wink. "She'll find it in her pocket."

"Clairvoyant?" Sakura questions. It certainly explains how she knew so much. "Is that common?"

"Not at all," Ino responds as she begins searching through textbooks on her desk. "Some people have slight affinities for it, a glimpse of an image here or there, but Miss Hyuga is a full-blown psychic."

The more experienced witch seems to find the book she was looking for, pulling it out of its spot and handing it over to Sakura. "Here, this explains the history and logistics of Matches, it'd be good for you to read through it."

Sakura glances at the plain blue textbook, nothing ornate or mystical looking about it. She hides her disappointment, expecting more from a book about magical soulmates.

"Speaking of which," Ino continues, as she settles on her bed, leaning forward so Sakura has her full attention. "Who's yours?"

"Umm…" Sakura hesitates, when they passed Sasuke in the hall that morning Ino seemed nervous around him. Besides, nobody has actually come out and told her that he is officially her Match.

"Come on, is it somebody embarrassing?" Ino pries, obviously not going to let the question go. "I'll give you all the information on them."

"I think it's… um… Sasuke Uchiha." Sakura finally says.

Ino's eyes widen slightly, her excitement obviously turning into concern.

"Oh," she states lamely. "Well, it's late, I'm going to bed." The blonde lies down in her bed, turning towards the wall.

"Yeah, goodnight." Sakura states awkwardly, the energy in the room having changed in a blink of an eye. Ino's reaction was all she needed to verify the fact that she has gotten into a dangerous situation. Uneasy, she settles into her bed. Knowing that she's unlikely to sleep after today's events, she flips open the text book and begins to read.

* * *

Shadows dance on the wall as if at war with each other, moving briskly from the flicker of the candlelight emitting around the room. Sasuke studies the movement, hoping to find something in the darkness, some sort of answer to it all.

"Please," he whispers, the candles glow brighter, but then flicker out completely. Without Karin, his magic is half what it used to be and he hates it.

 _Weak._

The creaking of a door rouses Sasuke from his trance. He knows who it is without turning.

"Hokage," he acknowledges.

"Uchiha," Tsunade responds, moving to sit across from him on the floor of the empty room. "How did healing go?"

"Fine," he mumbles.

"Listen, I'm gonna cut to the chase," the Hokage begins, all business. "Your powers have escalated. Being pulled in the cards is an omen of that, and I'm not sure it's a good one. I need you to be wary. This Haruno girl will be behind just from her powers arising late. The amount of force within her will be catastrophic if you don't help her learn."

Sasuke stares blankly, he is not a babysitter and restraint has never been a strength of his, but the prospect of his new Match's great power does interest him.

"Transitioning to a new Match is hard, I know," Tsunade fingers the charm around her neck, like she always does during these conversations. "Her powers will be so different from Karin's and with your 18th birthday coming up, you don't have a lot of time to dawdle."

"That's months away," he states, usually Matches have years of training together. If Tsunade plans on them completing the Soul Baring they're going to be under constant scrutiny of the faculty. That will make things difficult.

A puff of black smoke signals the entry of another figure.

"Orochimaru, what brings you here?" Tsunade asks the new arrival.

"Can I borrow young Sasuke?" He purrs in that unsettling tone of his.

"Of course," Tsunade replies as she turns to leave, "think about what I said, Sasuke."

When the door clicks shut Orochimaru places a hand on Sasuke's shoulder. "A powerful new Match, this is good."

"She's inexperienced," Sasuke replies, "She knows nothing of this world."

"That could work in our favor," the snake like man points out. "She has raw, untapped power, it could be just what you need for-"

"Itachi," Sasuke finishes the sentence as a glimmer of red glows in the darkness of the room.

* * *

Sakura's head swims as she tries to sort through everything she just read.

Eternal Partners… Soul Baring… Mind reading…

She shutters. It's some heavy stuff to contemplate. The literature describes the bond as something ethereal, intimate.

 _Many Matches have gone on to live their lives as spouses._

 _The act of physical intimacy is known to strengthen the sacred bond between a Match._

 _Soul Baring is the scared ritual resulting in a full awareness of one another. Partners are stripped bare mind, body, and soul._

Her heart flutters. This Match stuff sounds like an awful big commitment, no wonder the magic community focuses so heavily on it.

"Hey Ino?" Sakura begins, wanting to ask her new roommate more details. The blonde is snoring away happily so Sakura decides to wait until morning. Still unable to sleep, but eyes blurring from so much reading, she grabs a towel and goes in search of the communal showers.

She wanders down the hallway using her cellphone as a flashlight. She passed the showers earlier in the day, now is just a matter of finding where. If she thought the school was quiet during the day, at night it's like the grave. Not even a candle lights the hallways, which is surprising since the school seems to have an abundance of them. She's unsettled by the fact that in such a large building it's possible for the only sound to be the patter of her footsteps. As she continues her journey, she is eventually met with the sound of water running. Taking that as a signal that she's close to her destination, she follows the noise to a set of double doors with steaming rolling under them.

Excited for the mundanity of a simple shower, she steps inside. An expansive room greets her, brightly lit with multiple subunits divided by curtains. Only one of the stalls is occupied, the hissing spout behind a drawn curtain the source of the sound that led her here.

The humidity from the other occupant's warm shower embraces her. She quickly shuffles into a unit on the opposite side of the room and begins disrobing.

Turing the silver knob, a soft spurt of water begins pouring out freely. Stepping under the warmed stream, she instantly feels the stress from the day exit her body. She stands there for a moment, letting the water just roll off her body.

She reaches up to push the hair out of her face and catches a glimpse of the new silvery marks adorning her hand. The more she stares, the more she realizes her whole body is trembling. Slowly she slides to the tile floor wrapping her arms around her knees. She tucks her head down and cries; about her hand, about her confusion, about the loss of her normal life.

Sakura doesn't know how long she stays in that position, but when she finally rises to finish her shower she realizes the sound from the other stall has ceased. Hoping the other bather left before her breakdown started, Sakura peeks from behind the curtain and sees the other stall empty. Letting out an exhale of relief, she turns back to wrap herself in her towel.

Then the lights cut.

"Hello?" Sakura cries out, the bathroom is pitch black and she's struggling to find where she left her phone. "Somebody's in here!" she yells again, hoping that the other person just accidently flipped the switch.

"Great," she mutters and begins trying to gather up her clothes. Blindly grasping around she eventually comes into contact with her phone. Breathing out a sigh of relief, she turns on the flashlight.

The bright light bounces off of the cool tile and as she moves up her phone upwards, it illuminates a shadowy intruder standing within the stall. Sakura freezes as she realizes she's face to face with the menacing skeleton from the tarot card. However, this time, it's eyes burn a brilliant crimson. With a scream she leaps back unsteadily.

He stands there, scythe and all, his hand reaching out towards her once again. However, this time Sakura is in control of her own body and she bolts from the stall, her bare feet nearly slipping on the tile. Her breathing comes out as great gasps, panic overcoming her. Sakura feels her balance wain as she tumbles to the ground. Her adrenaline racing, she doesn't realize she's lying on somebody's damp chest until she looks up to see the stern face of her possible Match.

"Oh my god, Sasuke," she cries, practically wrapping her arms around him in relief. She doesn't care that he still slightly terrifies, she'll choose the distant boy over that skeleton any day. He wriggles from her grasp and quickly stands up. "It's the skeleton, the one from the card." Her voice is panicky, her breathing reduces to quick pants. However, when he offers a hand to help her up, she finds a sense of calm washing over her.

Her phone, having fallen to the ground in the scuffle, casts a spot light on the young man. It's then that she notices Sasuke is only clad in shorts, his dark hair wet and flat against his head. The words that she read in the book earlier drift to mind.

 _Eternal Partner… Soulmate…_

Sakura fights the blush that powders her cheeks and looks away. Without a word, Sasuke blows gently in his palm, a small ball of fire flickering to life. Floating right above the scared skin of his hand, it casts a warm light around the room. Walking past her, he enters the shower stall.

Her clothing lies in a crumpled mess on the floor, reminding her of the fact that she's only wrapped in a short towel. Other than that, the tiled stall is empty.

"Sasuke, I swear it was here," she begs with him to believe her. His face remains passive as she describes the scythe. "It was the same, huge and sharp, and his eyes," she shakes her head at the thought, "his eyes were glowing this deep red."

At this Sasuke faces her, his expression stern. "You're tired, go back to your room and sleep." He turns to leave her in there.

"Please Sasuke," tears begin streaming down her face. He has to believe her, this place can't be making her this crazy.

"You're annoying," he states. "Go back to your room."

Silently she gathers up her clothes, her cheeks flushing with embarrassment. Deciding she'll change once she gets away from the bathroom, she turns to leave as the boy continues to glance inside the shower. Maybe it is just from being tired. She had a lot of things happen today, but she could've sworn she saw concern on Sasuke's face when she described the skeleton. It was so vivid and those eyes, they shined that startling shad of crimson. When she reaches her bedroom without anymore incident, she lets out a breath she didn't realize she was holding. Whether it was real or imaginary, it's enough to deter her from taking anymore late night showers.


	3. The King of Cups

**_Author's_ _Note:_** _Sorry if you got updated about this chapter twice, the website's giving me some difficulty._

* * *

 **The King of Cups**

 ** _Upwards: compassion, control, balance_**

 ** _Reverse: coldness, moodiness, bad advice_**

 ** _Indicates balance between intellect and emotions and a strong relationship between understanding and feeling._**

* * *

The harsh fluorescents in the shower flicker on uneventfully. Closing his palm, Sasuke snuffs out the ball of flames that he had been using as a light source. He inspects the stall meticulously, daring the wet tile to reveal something he had missed.

 _Red eyes…_

It had to be a coincidence, nothing could be lingering from the ritual. Even if there was, why would it manifest itself as the reaper from the card. No, this doesn't make any sense. It had to have been her imagination.

That girl, seeing her panic had stirred something within him, he hadn't given a second thought to soothing her through his touch. After the healing, a strange since of longing had washed through him, to feel that strange wholeness, that familiar stream of as partner's power. Her chakra feels completely different from Karin's, more free, more raw. It feels so good –

 _No._

He doesn't need it, he doesn't need her emotions, her baggage. All he needs is the power, everything else is just a distraction. Hell, if she has half the amount of power that everybody keeps saying she does they won't need a traditional bond to fulfill his desires. He'll play along, learn to master her untapped energy, but he will not open himself up to all the implications of the Match. This naïve, oblivious girl does not need to be poking around in his head, seeing all the horrors that have followed him. No, he'll leave the sentiments out of their partnership at any cost necessary.

* * *

Sakura fiddles with her hands anxiously; despite the lack of sleep from the night before, she feels incredibly on edge as if she's had too many espresso shots. The office she sits in is impressive in size, lined with large windows and filled with all manner of trinkets. Candles, tapestries, and strange runes adorn the walls while mason jars filled with crystals, colored oils, and dried flower petals cover the black-wooded desk haphazardly. A scented mist fills the air and with each breath of it, Sakura finds herself feeling more and more at ease.

"So, how are you settling in?" the Hokage asks as she fiddles with a jade teapot.

Sakura thinks of the hectic past twenty-four hours and hesitates to respond.

"That's okay, I realize you're probably still overwhelmed with everything," Tsunade pours into an ornately painted cup. "Tea?" she questions as she slides the cup in front of Sakura. The inexperienced witch accepts the offer and glances down at the cup. The clear liquid certainly doesn't look like any tea she's had before, however, what it lacks in color it more than makes up for it with the aromatic steam wafting up carrying a delicious floral scent. She tests its with a small sip to find it the perfect temperature and the flavor indescribably delicious.

"So, I'm sure Sasuke told you about keeping the incident with the cards quiet," Tsunade begins, getting down to business as she takes a seat, "Of course, that shouldn't be too much of an issue, asking another magical being about what occurred during their test is somewhat taboo in our community," she eyes Sakura pointedly. "You could even say the experience is intimate in nature."

Warmth dances across Sakura's cheeks, this new world she found herself was no skip in the park. Everything, she felt, had a purpose, a deeper meaning. This realization along with the secrecy and the feeling of being constantly scrutinized makes Sakura wish she were back home. Yes, she is interested and even a little excited to learn about her power and the ways of magic but fear constantly casts its shadow in her mind.

"I was reading up on the Soul Baring ritual last night and I had a question," Sakura pauses trying to think through her words carefully, she doesn't want to offend the Hokage by diminishing the ancient traditions. "Is all of the physical stuff between matches really necessary?" Sure, Sakura has kissed boys before and even a little more, she is eighteen for crying out loud, but due to the fact that it seems to be almost an expectation of her to do these actions with a stranger is unsettling.

"It's nothing to be bashful about," Tsunade begins, chuckling slightly at the question. However, when she acknowledges the girl's discomfort, she sobers. "However, you'd be comforted to know that many matches go on to only use physical touch during rituals and spells. The pull you feel for your Match really is the determining factor and every bond is different."

Sakura finds comfort in this, feeling as though she still has some control. She's sure that Sasuke Uchiha is a nice guy, but her few brief interactions with him make her feel as though he's not one to warm up to people easily. Perhaps they would be one of those more distant set of partners.

"I know that you have barely experienced this world as well as your power, but it's crucial that you and Sasuke still complete the Soul Baring on time."

Thinking to her readings, Sakura remembers that the sacred ritual is performed on the younger's eighteenth birthday. "When would that be?" she asks.

"July 23rd," Tsunade replies and Sakura's jaw almost drops.

"That's barely three months!" Sakura exclaims. Most of the students here have had experience with magic since birth. They train their whole lives and grow up around their partners. There's no way that Sasuke and her will be ready to complete the ritual with the current timeline.

"Since training continues through summer and I've already scheduled private lessons for the two of you, there is more than enough time." Tsunade tries to calm Sakura who seems to be growing more anxious by the second. "Nevertheless, you well need to work extremely hard to get on the same level of Mr. Uchiha, his difficult nature can be complicated to balance out," the Hokage ignores the slight huff of aggravation from the student. "You have what it takes, otherwise the cards would not have Matched you."

"About Sasuke," Sakura begins, staring down at the colorless remnants of the tea. "Am I in any danger by being Matched with him?" She sets the elegant cup upon the great desk, settling for wringing her fingers in nervousness. "Ino told me a little bit about what happened with Karin and I-"

The blonde woman raises a hand, silencing the last of Sakura's thoughts. Her brown eyes narrow seriously. "There is a thin line between light and dark magic," she speaks slowly, her tone dangerously flat, as if to prove a point. "When somebody is hurt, that line blurs," she pauses, thinking through her next response carefully. "While it doesn't make the situation any less sad or horrible, Sasuke and Karin crossed that line and they reaped the consequences."

Sakura's mind whirls, Tsunade didn't really answer her question, instead she left her with even more. What happened to them that they would risk dark magic? How did she know Sasuke won't try it again? After all, she's so new to this world, she's unaware of the differences. She could be deceived into performing a dark spell and be none the wiser. What does dark magic even look like?

The red eyes she saw within the shower flash into the young witch's mind. That _thing_ certainly came across as dark. She opens her mouth, intent on telling Tsunade about the incident, however, Sasuke's dismissiveness drifts to her mind. It probably was just her imagination, she has been tired and anxious about this new life and the darkness was just playing tricks on her. Instead, Sakura closes her mouth and listens as the elder magician continues.

"The other professors and myself will be vigilant, we have numerous seals placed throughout the school and we'll intervene if we feel it is necessary."

This doesn't really make Sakura feel anymore safe, but instead of dwelling upon it, she thanks the Hokage for her time and dismisses herself. Her first private lesson with Sasuke is tomorrow evening and she would like to be better rested before their encounter. She has a feeling that these next three months will not allow for very much dawdling

* * *

The private practice room looks like it came from a dream. The circular space consists of marbled flooring and walls with large candelabras lining it. Mountains of colored wax lie beneath the black iron structures, piled high with hours worth of melted candles. The high ceilings give way to a narrow skylight that brings in an impressive amount of moonlight.

Sakura's shoes patter softly as she journeys deeper into the breathtaking place. She studies the white floors to see engraved black runes converge in a circular shape, marking off the official summoning space.

"Miss Haruno."

Sakura jumps at her name, having been so engrossed in trying to figure out what the symbols mean. Turning, she sees a professor with long black hair enter in the doorway. His skin has an unnatural pallor to it, emphasized by the black robes he's clothed in.

She feels slightly unsettled by his presence, but Sakura assumes it is simply due to the aura of power he emits. Realizing she's being rude by staring, Sakura extends a gloved hand in his direction.

"You must be Professor Orochimaru," she concludes, thinking back to the name on her schedule. "It's a pleasure to meet you." His golden eyes follow her movements watchfully, as if he is a predator stalking prey, but he extends his hand with little grandeur.

"While we wait for young Sasuke, I can tell you what this session will be like," he begins as each of the candle wicks catch fire one by one. "This first lesson will simply be to gage your power as well as your compatibility with each other. It should be very…" he pauses as the last candle in the room flickers to life, "enlightening."

A shiver runs down Sakura's spine, but her discomfort is quickly dismissed as the door opens.

In walks her Match, clothed in his usual shades of black with a very bored look on his face.

"Sasuke," the professor emphasizes each of the syllables. "Right on time. I was just telling Miss Haruno how the first session will go."

Seeming to ignore him, Sasuke continues to the center of the room and takes a seat on top of one of the dark, swirling patterns adorning the floor. He pointedly removes his gloves and with a wave of his hand, the dark fabric disappears. He turns to lock eyes with Sakura and gestures to the space across from him.

Following his silent order, Sakura takes her place and follows suit in removing her own gloves. Unable to _poof_ them into nonexistence, she lamely sets them on the ground next to her.

"Now," Orochimaru states, "take each other's hands."

With a surprising promptness, her partner's hands are reached out towards her expectantly. Catching sight of his web-like scarring that matches her own, she hesitates slightly thinking of the last time they grasped hands. She imagines what she might feel when she touches him this time. Will it be like in the shower where touching him had calmed her or the humming when they healed each other, she ponders while extending her own hands and brushing across his cool skin.

Nothing.

Sakura opens her eyes, not realizing she had snapped them shut in anticipation to see their two pairs of joined hands. Other then the coolness of his skin, she doesn't feel anything magical or powerful. Slowly, her gaze travels up to his face, expecting to see disappointment or maybe even annoyance on Sasuke's face only to be met with a blank stare of inexpressiveness.

"Feel each other's power," Orochimaru instructs, watching the pair. "As a Matched set you should be able to sense each other's emotions and measure the strength flowing between your bodies."

"Um…" Sakura begins, about to dispute that thought, but Sasuke gives a slight squeeze to her palm to silence her.

"Power and emotion go hand and hand," Orochimaru continues his lecture as Sakura silently sits, waiting for something… anything to happen. "Some of histories most powerful Matches have had their highest spikes of magic occur during times of high stress and emotion. Open yourselves up to each other and flood the other with your thoughts."

Sakura's not quite sure how to accomplish opening her self up to this boy who definitely does not seem to want to participate, so she just decides to try thinking really hard.

 _This is weird._ She tries to project the thought, but is not sure if her Match is picking up on it. _I feel like a fool. This school is strange. Your hands are cold._

Still no reaction and no change. This is nothing like the bond she read about in all those textbooks. They had described a feeling of fulfilment of each other, a merging of one. However, at this point Sakura feels as if she's just merging with a wall, a blank slate, nothing.

"Concentrate," Orochimaru comments, seeming to direct the demand at Sasuke more than herself.

They sit like that for what seems like ages, no power, no flow, just awkwardly holding each other's hands. Even the instructor picks up on the lack of chemistry and cuts the lesson short.

"We will try this again another time," Orochimaru tells them as he extinguishes the candles with a wave of his hand. "In the meantime, focus on getting to know each other better, that may help."

Sakura feels a sense of shame, almost as if she's failed her first test here. How could they go from having two encounters where she can physically feel his power to nothing? Maybe they do just need to make more of an effort outside the classroom. She moves towards the door slowly, waiting for Sasuke expectantly.

"Would you want to get dinner tomorrow after class or something?" she asks him. This is there chance to have a somewhat normal experience together, no magic involved. However, the boy just brushes past her, letting out a grunt of disapproval.

She stands there, awkwardly, wondering what she could have done to make him so cold to her in such a short period of time. So much for being soulmates.


	4. Knight of Wands

**_Knight of Wands_**

 _Opposition of this card indicates frustrations, delays, and the need to compensate for something that you lack control over._

 _Up: action, adventure, fearlessness_

 _Reversed: Anger, Impulsivity, recklessness_

* * *

"First day of class!" An enthusiastic voice calls as hands forcefully shake the snoozing body that's happily cocooned in a pile of blankets.

Rather than dignifying the rude awakening with a response, Sakura flips over and pulls the duvet over her head. Magic school or no, early mornings are not her thing, especially after the late-night private session with her partner.

"Come on, Sakura," an exasperated Ino whines as she settles for ripping the entire set of bedding off her very annoyed roommate. "What type of friend would I be if I let you sleep through your first class."

Realizing that it's time to admit defeat, Sakura begrudgingly rises from the mattress and begins shuffling around the room to get ready. "Fine…" she lets a sigh escape her, "do you have a spell that can magically cause caffeine to enter my body?"

"Tough out of luck, sweetie," Ino responds as she begins brushing out her golden strands of hair. "That sounds like the job for your Match."

Sakura's stomach begins to turn in knots at the mention of her partner. Last night was an obvious disaster and just further provoked her unease of their whole situation. The thought of how quickly July approaches gnaws at her, causing her fingers to tremble and making it extremely difficult to apply any make up.

Once both girls are ready, they set out to their first class. "How was last night by the way?" Ino asks, a sense of wariness in her voice. The more experienced witch is obviously still hesitant when it comes to the Uchiha boy, though she tries to hide it.

"I don't think he likes me very much," Sakura states, thinking of all their interactions to date. Though their attitudes towards each other dance the line of hot and cold, it's obvious there is a wall between them. She would be lying if she claimed to not have contributed to that, especially after her conversation with the Hokage, which did little to quell her fears of the situation. Dark magic or no, her Match's last partner is still dead.

"Sasuke doesn't like anybody," Ino responds with a snort, "he never really has."

Sakura lets out a humorless chuckle at her roommate's words. Though, she's not sure if they are meant to comfort her or if the other girl is simply stating a fact.

"Isn't the whole Match thing supposed to mean he has to like me?" she questions, everything about their situation is still so confusing.

"Unfortunately, it doesn't work that way," Ino responds as she ushers Sakura into the classroom. It's less than magnificent with ordinary black tables for the students to sit at and a dirty, freestanding chalkboard at the front of the room.

"Like any type of relationship you still have to build up trust and grow with each other," she continues, taking a seat next to Sai who is already prepared for class with a notebook and pen sitting in front of him. "It can just be easier with the bond since you guys have a deeper understanding of each other. Being able pick up on the other's thoughts and feelings does have that advantage."

"Well a whole lot of good this bond is doing," Sakura mutters to herself as she thinks back to the lack of connection last night. Apparently, Sasuke is trying to keep her out of his head. Maybe he's just not ready for a new Match yet.

"Good morning."

Sakura turns to see Hinata settling into the seat on her opposite side, pushing a travel mug in her direction.

"Witches brew?" Sakura questions jokingly as she accepts the offering.

Hinata gives a small smile in response. "Coffee," she corrects, "You wouldn't want to fall asleep on your first day, you could miss something important." A lavender-eyed wink causes Sakura to smile, she's discovering that she really likes the clairvoyant witch regardless of her cryptic words and apparent ability to read her mind.

She takes a big gulp from the warm tumbler, whose contents has been perfectly sweetened to her liking, as the classroom begins to fill with students. Though it's a small area, more people than she's seen in her entire time here occupy it. Magicians of all shapes and sizes joke and laugh, more than one of the pairs holding hands or snuggling close to one another. She almost wants to laugh at the mundanity of it all, despite the few floating objects and periodic puffs of smoke it feels like any other classroom.

The commotion begins to settle down when the professor saunters in lazily, throwing his lesson plan down on the desk with a unceremonious _flop_. Sakura recognizes the silver hair and masked face of Kakashi Hatake, the man that greeted her when she had been teleported from the train station.

"DILF" Ino whispers to her as the last of the whispers around them quiet.

Sakura ignores her and prepares to listen to the lecture but a shadow in the corner of her eye causes her attention to turn back to the doorway.

Silently, Sasuke slips into the room and settles into a chair in the very back. He catches Sakura's gaze so she gives him an awkward wave. Of course, he turns away without any acknowledgement of her presence.

 _This is hopeless,_ Sakura thinks, resting her chin in her hand. She takes comfort in the fact that Ino's not wrong about the attractiveness of Professor Hatake, well what little you can actually see of him. As he begins to write on the board, Sakura notices the slender yet well-toned muscles flexing beneath his tight sleeves.

While Ino barely pays attention to the lesson, settling for absentmindedly _poofing_ small flowers of various size and color in and out of existence, Sakura finds herself very intrigued. Today's lesson is about the fourth Hokage and how he and his Match had to sacrifice themselves in order to slay a great beast created from magic. Hinata lets out a slight shudder at the mention of its name, Kyuubi. It's hard for Sakura to grasp that this is truly is the history of her kind as it sounds much more like the plot to a movie.

"But how did the Kyuubi even come to be in the first place?" Asks a female student sitting directly behind Sakura, "You said that it's a manifestation of extremely powerful dark magic."

The instructor pauses at the question, before answering in a very deliberate tone. "A man who was blinded by the lust for more power forced his partner to embody the darkness and in the end it consumed her completely."

A shiver wracks itself up Sakura's spine. She turns to ask Hinata what it means to be consumed by magic only to see wide, opalescent eyes staring at her, unfocused. "Hinata?" she questions the dazed girl, her gaze causing unease to gnaw at Sakura's stomach. After just a moment longer, her eyelids flutter with a couple blinks and she turns back to the front of the room as if nothing had happened.

"Sorry, Sakura," Hinata whispers without looking at her pink-haired friend. "Just a vision."

With that, Sakura returns her attention to the lecture, trying to pay attention to the logistics of how the third Hokage made laws to reform the use of dark magic after the death of his successor, but her mind keeps wandering to the story of the Kyuubi. How could a Match turn his partner into something so animalistic? But then again, how could one cause the death of their Match, accidentally or not?

Sakura shakes her head, she shouldn't dwell on these thoughts. Everybody said what happened was an accident, it's not like Sasuke directly murdered Karin, right? Nobody has actually revealed the full details of the event, it could have been anything that caused the girl to die. Getting lost in her thoughts of worst-case scenarios, she doesn't notice the pair of dark eyes fixated on the back of her head.

* * *

Sasuke stares at his pink-haired partner in the front of the room, he can tell she's not paying attention to the lesson, probably lost in her head about the complicated history she's never heard before. As for himself, he could practically recite the story in his sleep, having grown up learning the more detailed version of it. The Kyuubi has always been the "boogieman" of the magical world, a warning to misbehaving children and the Fourth Hokage is their version of Superman, the hero among them willing to sacrifice himself to save them all.

Soon enough, class is dismissed, and he smoothly slips out the door heading towards a meeting with Orochimaru. However, as he is about to turn the corner a gentle hand clasps over his arm. He takes great care to keep his skin covered, but the simple brush of the stranger's bare pinky against the exposed sliver of flesh between his glove and sleeve is all it takes.

He feels a chilling sensation wash through his veins as if he's being viewed from the inside out. Gooseflesh breaks out over his body and he quickly jerks away from the offending limb. Turning to confront whoever dare touch him, assuming it's his nuisance of a Match, he's shocked to find the Hyuga girl staring at him instead.

"If you don't change your course of action, history will repeat itself," she tells him, her usually gentle voice sharp and severe.

Anger washes his face in red, but instead of dignifying this with a response he turns to leave. He intends to ignore the clairvoyant's prophecy, but the last of the girl's words leave him feeling rattled.

"In more ways than one."

Not wanting to be near the young psychic anymore he quickens his walk to Orochimaru's office, silently cursing the whole way. How dare she read him, how dare she try and tell him what to do. It doesn't matter if she's gifted with the Sight, she doesn't know anything about him.

Thankfully, the distance between his destination and the classroom is minimal, giving him less time to dwell on the haunting prophecy and his anger that's threatening to boil over. Without bothering to knock, he opens the door to the professor's office.

It's dark, the natural light from the windows blocked out by thick, black curtains. Furnishings in the office are sparse, consisting only of the necessities: a black desk with various chalked runes scribbled over the surface, a small wooden cabinet containing ancient scrolls and dusty jars. A single orb emitting an eerie white light slightly bobs from its position above the desk, the slow bouncing causing the dark shadows of the room to dance with slow, purposeful movements.

"Ah, young Sasuke," a voice purrs from behind, despite the space being empty beforehand. "Thank you for stopping by."

"You wanted a meeting," the boy states, wanting to quickly finish this so he can be alone after what had just occurred with the young psychic.

"Yes," he pauses, pacing around the room until he eventually settles at the desk. "It's concerning our last private session with Miss Haruno." When Sasuke only continues to stare at the professor with a bored expression, he continues. "You've completely blocked the connection between you," Orochimaru fiddles with a blunted piece of chalk, adding small corrections to the sketched-out designs on the surface of the furniture. "This is not acceptable."

"She doesn't need to know anything about me," Sasuke snaps, impatient with everybody trying to tell him what to do with _his_ Match.

"Now, Sasuke," Orochimaru tuts, an exacerbating belittlement lacing his tone. "You know it doesn't work that way. How can you expect either of your powers to flourish under those circumstances?"

"I can call upon her magic when I need it," he responds, wishing this conversation would come to an end.

"While you may want to simply tap into her reservoir, it will just diminish if there's no compatibility prompting it to thrive," he flourishes his hands in the air, emphasizing each of his words. "You can't just continuously harvest a crop and expect it to always be ripe. You must nurture it."

Sasuke's thoughts go to the outcasts of the magic community, people who never find Matches. Their magic wastes away, the source of balance to sustain it never discovered. In some severe cases, the loss of that piece of their life drives them to insanity, leaving them as less than the normal humans.

"How do you expect to complete the Soul Baring?" The professor continues, his yellow eyes raising to lock with Sasuke's.

The student remains silent, not fully sure how to phrase his turbulent thoughts. He can't imagine going through a Soul Baring with Sakura. Her naivety of the magical world and cloudy understanding of how Matches work make her so complicated. How would she react if she really saw what was in his soul, his past? There are things in it she would never witness, even in her worst nightmares. She wouldn't be able to handle it.

"Just keep the end goal in mind," Orochimaru rouses him from the dark path his thoughts are swirling. "Determination alone is not enough to achieve what you need to."

* * *

Sakura runs down the hallway, an impromptu nap causing her to be late for an evening session with the Hokage. Stray hairs fly behind her, the quick messy bun she pulled back jostling free with the commotion. After making a couple wrong turns and having to backtrack, she finally bursts into the practice room.

"I made it!" she puffs out, trying to catch her breath. Surprisingly, she notices that she's not the only one running late as there's no sign of the instructor meant to guide their session. The lone occupant of the room seems to stop mid-step when she enters.

Expecting her partner to simply ignore her presence until necessity warrants it, Sakura quietly moves to the center of the room. She can't stop the automatic jump of surprise her body does when a firm hand spins her around.

Green eyes widen at both the rough action and the proximity of his face.

"Sasuke what are-"

"You should stay away from the Hyuga girl," he states, close enough that Sakura can feel the warmth of his breath as it hits her cheek.

A dark expression cloaks his face, the severity taking her off guard. It takes her a moment to process his words, but quickly, her surprise is overtaken by anger.

"Who do you think you are?" she practically yells as she shakes his grip off her. Never being one to control her temper, she knows her eyes must be burning with a viridian fire. "You don't get to just ignore me all day then try to bark orders at me."

He doesn't attempt to respond, settling for staring at her blankly, either not taking her outburst seriously or too stunned to know what to do next. Reasoning that the former is far more likely than the latter, the wave of Sakura's fury comes to a crest. Her hands shake and she briefly notices a tingling sensation around her fingertips.

Ever since they met Sasuke dismisses her attempts to be friendly, avoids her questions, refrains from any unnecessary interactions, and now he's trying to tell her to leave one of the few people that have been sympathetic to her situation. How dare he think he has any say over who she gets to associate with. She opens her mouth to yell at him again but is cut off by the entry of the Hokage.

Timing as impeccable as ever, Tsunade takes in the aura of the room with the raise of an incredulous eyebrow. "Good to see you too getting along better," she mutters sarcastically, half-debating summoning a bottle of sake to get her through what's bound to be an interesting lesson.

Neither of the students try to answer nor attempt to move from their stare-down, as if the first to break eye contact is admitting defeat.

"Well," the Hokage begins, "strong emotions can lead to some intense chakra merging, however, I do need the both of you to starting listening, _now."_ At the last word, a gripping force washes over the two, pushing their bodies downward so that they are made to sit across from each other. This compulsion causes the tension to break and each looks away from the other. "Now, take a deep breath and grasp each other's hands."

Sakura begrudgingly takes off her gloves. The voice of the Hokage seems to have a calming effect on her, however, she still feels the electric sensation dancing in her fingertips. She makes no move to actually reach for her asshole of a partner's hands.

Sasuke seems to have a similar mindset taking his sweet time pulling the dark gloves leisurely off each finger.

"I said, _now_."

At Tsunade's voice, the stubborn will of both students evaporates, as magic prompts each to grasp the others' palm firmly.

Upon making contact, Sasuke quickly jolts his hands away, for a brief moment a look of distraught flickering on his face.

"Come now, Sasuke," Tsunade tuts impatiently, "do not make me compel you for the entire lesson."

The boy doesn't respond, but scowls at his hand for a moment before extending it once again. Hesitantly, he wraps his fingers around Sakura's wrist.

"Very good," Tsunade mutters, annoyance and sarcasm interwoven in her tone. "Now we can actually begin." With a wave of her fingers, a hazy figure forms in the air before plopping into her open palm.

"A lightbulb?" Sakura questions as she stares at the object.

"Make it glow," Tsunade instructs as she suspends the bulb in the air. "This exercise focuses on both drawing upon each other's power and controlling it at the same time. If you try to simply overpower one another, the glass will shatter. If you are unable to summon enough power, it won't light."

Finding this a lot more interesting than just attempting to push thoughts into Sasuke's head, Sakura excitedly looks to her partner. Unsurprisingly, she's met only with bored exasperation.

 _Glad we're on the same page, you arrogant asshole._

"Focus guys," Tsunade prompts, indicating back to the bulb.

Trying to stamp down her annoyance, Sakura stares at the frosted glass above them. She imagines the coils within burning with her power, her energy, her anger…

 _Pop!_

The glass shatters, raining down around them.

"Okay, that's a start at least," Tsunade says before producing another lightbulb. "Instead of each of you trying to do it on your own, try cooperate. You won't need to summon nearly as much individual energy."

Sakura turns to face the new lightbulb but Tsunade gently press her hand to her face, forcing her to look at Sasuke instead.

"Look at each other, not the light. Focus on each other and your common goal, the rest will follow. "

Looking at his face, she sees only the superiority of somebody that doesn't believe she fits in this world. His deep eyes stare down at her, his sharp nose lifted in arrogance. The crackling energy in her fingers returns but instead of Sasuke pulling away she notices the metallic tinge in the air as his own power errupts.

"Careful," Tsunade orders calmly as she observes the opposing electric sparks of energy exploding around the teenagers. Green and black flashes of light begin to war with each other, the shiny new bulb left forgotten above as the power struggle takes place on the ground. While it would take no effort on her part to stop the teenagers, she simply stands back to observed, interested in where this will go. Perhaps some conflict is exactly what their relationship needs to grow.

Sakura feels her hair standing on end with the friction in the air, senses her power climbing as she challenges Sasuke. He can look down on her all he wants, but he needs to learn that she will not roll over so easily. Tightening her grip on his wrist, she pushes harder against the resistance between them. He needs to know that she will fight him tooth and nail before she yields to his every whim.

 _"When everybody thought all was lost, the hero stepped in and saved the villagers from the Kyuubi, sealing the foul beast away forever."_

Sakura shakes her head as the strange voice drifts through the room. A woman?

" _Someday I'm going to be the hero that saves everybody!"_ an enthusiastic voice of a young boy responds.

Sakura sees onyx eyes widen slightly as Sasuke's stubborn façade begins to crack. He hears it too and he doesn't like it.

" _I'm sure you will."_ The woman's voice returns, a happy chuckle lacing her words. " _Goodnight. I love you very much, Sasuke."_

Sasuke begins to try and pull his hands from Sakura's trying to make his memory go away, but she clings tighter as she realizes that she's finally broken through his defenses; she's in his thoughts, listening to a memory from long ago.

" _I love you too, mommy."_

The energy in the room mounts, reaching its peak as each of the young magician's emotions rise Sakura's anger and determination mixing with Sasuke's pain and stubbornness. With a jolt, the pink-haired girl finds herself being tossed across the room, her back hitting the marble wall with a painful crack before she crumbles to the ground. It takes her a minute to muster up the energy to push herself up, her head rushing in protest after it's forceful impact.

"Your mother," she chokes out, feeling as if she just got beat up. Her partner lays sprawled on the floor on the opposite side of the room, slowly rising to his own shaky legs. "I heard her reading to you."

With enough malice to curdle blood, dark eyes pin her in place, daring her to move another inch. "You heard nothing."

He stumbles past the Hokage, who has been quietly observing this interaction, before practically falling out of the room.

"What just happened?" Sakura asks the blonde woman who appears to be in deep contemplation.

"You two were fighting against each other, but since your magic knows it's meant to be compatible it forced you to merge. You were in his head, but that's not what caused you to break out of it so violently."

"I forced him to let me see more," Sakura mutters slightly, realizing that it was the catalyst to their pushback. She was so determined to learn the rest of the memory, to complete her glimpse into his childhood.

"Sasuke is… difficult," the Hokage continues, her tone firm. "But you can't pry into his mind. Your Match has to be willing to let you in."

"So is what just happened bad?" She questions wondering what this means for the progress in their relationship.

"No, but I don't necessarily think it's positive either." Tsunade's gaze lifts to above where the teenagers had been sitting. "Your merged power is something very curious. Go get some rest, we still have a lot of work to do."

Sakura exits the training room, not even noticing the bright emerald illumination now being cast from the forgotten lightbulb still suspended in the air.


	5. Judgement

**_Judgement_**

 _Indicates a period of awakening brought upon by reflection_

 _Up: reflection, reckoning, awakening_

 _Reversed: doubt, self loathing_

* * *

"I still don't get it," Sakura glares angrily at the only quiz question she missed in her Theory of Magic class today. "' _Appropriate mediums are necessary when completing any difficult and complex spells,'_ Why wouldn't that be 'true'?"

"Because, you can master any spell and not need mediums," Ino responds.

The roommates along with Hinata and Sai lay about the dorm room, all manners of textbooks, writing utensils, and various spell ingredients scattered around them. School work this week has been especially brutal with assignments, quizzes, and spell practicals in almost every subject. Sakura feels battered but has been doing surprisingly well so far considering both her later start at the academy and her extra lessons. She lets out a little sneeze, the incense that Sai burns fills the room with a pungent smell. It causes her nose to itch, but he needs the dusty smoke to practice a levitation spell.

"Look at this passage," Hinata points to a line in one of their textbooks. "' _Even though it appears as though spell mediums are needed for almost all spells at the beginning of a young witch or warlock's training, they can be thought of as a cooking recipe, necessary to assist in learning in the beginning, but able to be set aside once the spell has been mastered.'_ Just think about how otherwise the professors would always need a candle and bowl of water before they appeared anywhere."

"I guess," Sakura grumbles, still bitter about missing the test point. With a groan, she leans back on her bed. Staring up, she eyes the new decorations she and Ino had picked up in town on a recent trip. Being able to leave the campus and just shop and get coffee off campus had been a much-needed reprieve from the chaos of her new life. Who knew how much she would miss the simple mundanity of going to a café?

Fairy lights, painted letters of their initials, and shiny new picture frames now warm up the very white room. A smile appears on her face as she sees her new favorite picture, the four of them standing outside the movie theater after seeing a late-night horror film; ironically, the movie had been about an evil witch. Even though they're all smiling and laughing, you can make out the tear streaks on Ino's face from being so scared that she cried. Sakura knows that she's so lucky to have found such a great group of friends so quickly, they've really helped her transition into this unimaginably different environment. Stifling a yawn, she sits up to face the group again.

"How are the late-night lessons going?" Sai asks, catching Sakura's tired look, as he attempts to swirl the smoke around him again.

"They're fine," she replies quickly, not really wanting to occupy her thoughts with _him_ while she is with her friends.

"No, really," Ino interjects, looking up from her textbook "How is tall, dark, and brooding?"

She takes a moment to think about how she should answer her eager friend. Things haven't been particularly bad, but they haven't been any better. They haven't "merged" again since the first time when she could hear his mother, Sasuke's been very cautious about it, but they've also been able to complete almost all the tasks the instructors have given them. Though Sakura has a feeling that the professors are keeping things unusually simple for her sake.

Ever since the lightbulb lesson, a strange sense of anxiousness rushes through Sakura whenever Sasuke and her are using their powers. Like her magic is leaking from a pipe and threatening to burst free. She feels as if she's repressing her powers and her body doesn't like it. Sasuke seems to be getting restless with the simplicity of their lessons as well. Though he doesn't say it out loud - he doesn't really say anything out loud - Sakura gets the feeling that he thinks their lessons are a waste of time.

"He hates me," Sakura finally admits. Sasuke hasn't been particularly cruel to her, but he always seems to regard her presence as an annoyance. "It's been weeks and we haven't had any interactions beyond the private lessons. He comes to class late and leaves early, I never see him in the hall, and I don't even know where his room is. Anytime I get some sort of a chance to have a normal conversation with him, he just vanishes." It's true, he always disappears whenever an opportunity arises to speak with him.

Blue eyes stare at her pityingly. "I'm sure things will shape up as your bond grows," Ino begins, "Sai and I didn't get along when we were first Matched."

Sakura eyes Ino's legs resting comfortably across Sai's lap, their flow of chemistry and easy-going nature when they're in each other's presence is something Sakura has come to envy. Having had more time here to observe various Matches, the young witch is beginning to feel like her card test was faulty. How can she and Sasuke fix this thing between them when she's not even sure how it broke to begin with? How will they get the chance to grow when their obligatory lessons are the only time he spend with her?

"I thought we had made progress at one point, I was able to hear one of his old memories," she tells them, not going into the details of the whole lesson. "I just wanted to hear more, so I pried, but I feel like he's closed me off since then."

"You pushed into his mind," Ino says slowly, "That's a big no-no in this world, like a code between Matches. You let the other person give what they're willing to let you take."

Great. Sakura thinks about how Tsunade said something similar. It's not her fault this is happening, how was she supposed to know she couldn't do that? She shifts her weight anxiously, feeling like a child being reprimanded.

"Speaking of which," Hinata cuts in, "You're going to be late for your lesson."

Sakura glances at the clock and visibly flinches, she does not feel up to another two hours with Sasuke glaring at her.

"Come on," the clairvoyant helps her pink-haired friend up from the bed, "I'll walk you there."

"Thanks Hinata," Sakura responds once the girls enter the hallway.

After turning a corner, Hinata begins to speak. "I didn't want to say it in there, but you're going to need to be there for Ino in the next coming days," she whispers quietly.

"Why?" Sakura begins to panic, "Is she in danger?"

"No!" Hinata is quick to clarify. "She's going to be fine physically, but she's going to need your support."

Sakura begins running scenarios through her head. Eventually she figures out what the young psychic could be referring to but is almost too afraid to ask. "It's Shikamaru, isn't it?" Hinata doesn't give away any emotion, but by her silence Sakura knows she's hit the nail on the head. "Don't tell me he's going to break up with her." She cringes thinking of the mess that Ino will be if that happens.

"You know I'm not allowed to actually tell you anything about my visions because of the whole space/time wrinkle thing," Hinata says the phrase slowly, even though Sakura must have heard it a hundred times by now. "But," she pauses, "I can neither confirm nor deny your statement." She ends her sentence with a wink. That girl certainly likes her loopholes.

"Thanks for the heads up," Sakura responds, already trying to formulate a plan to cheer up her soon to be single roommate.

As the girls draw near to the practice room, Sakura slows her steps.

"You seem nervous," Hinata states, seeming concerned for her friend.

"Not really," Sakura shakes her head, "Okay, a little," she corrects realizing it's dumb to try and hide something from somebody with the Sight. "I just never know what to expect from him. We never get along and I just feeling like there's no hope for this partnership." She lets out an exasperated sigh. "Is there a way to ask for a redo of the cards?" She's only half joking with the question, but Hinata chuckles nonetheless.

"No, you guys have been Matched for a purpose," she lays a soothing hand on Sakura's cheek. "Hold firm to your will, strength in your relationship will serve you well."

"That means we're gonna keep fighting for a while, right?" Sakura mutters, unhappily.

"I can neither-"

"Confirm nor deny," the new magician finishes the sentence for her friend. "Yeah, I know."

With a comforting smile, Hinata begins walking away, leaving Sakura to face her demons.

* * *

"You're not trying hard enough," Sasuke bites out as Sakura, once again, removes her bare hands from his forearms.

Perspiration beads on her forehead and she pants tiredly. "I am," she grits out.

It had been an hour since their session together had begun and it has not been going well. The professors had decided to up their game with the training, with today's lesson consisting of attempting to make it rain in the practice room. They haven't managed to summon even a drop of water and both have become extremely frustrated and started lashing out. The especially irritated Sasuke has settled for his usual act of just straight up being a jerk.

In the beginning she tried to be understanding of his moodiness, after all, he did tragically lose a partner not too long ago and having to take on a new one is bound to be tough, but his constant snapping and nagging has pushed her to the edge.

"Obviously not hard enough. I don't get how we could have possibly been partnered together." He spins around as if heading towards the door. "You're useless."

"And you're an asshole!" Sakura yells back, she's not sure if this is what Hinata meant be holding firm to her will, but she's had enough of Uchiha's attitude. The boy at least has the decency to stop walking and listen to her anger. "You're supposed to be helping me! Stop wasting both of our time and talk to me!"

"Both of you, enough!" Tsunade yells before Sakura gets a chance to retort. "This is not the way Matches are supposed to treat each other." She exhales exasperatedly through her nose. "Partners need to support one another, make up for each other's weaknesses and amplify the other's strengths."

She turns to Sakura. "Haruno, you need to push harder, magic is power and for power to work, you need to be strong. You are too hesitant. And you, Uchiha," she whirls on Sasuke, her eyes practically flaming now. "You need to remember what it is like in the beginning, you need to adapt to Sakura's style and assist her. You can't just expect to pick up where your training left off. She is not Karin."

Anger flares behind dark eyes, a look both murderous and menacing. Sakura had never truly been scared of her partner until now. All the hatred in the world seems to rest in those eyes.

"Obviously," he bites out before turning on them and bursting out the door.

Sakura's jaw drops at his action. She feels as though she's been slapped in the face. How did everything get to this point? It feels like what little positive feelings they might have had for each other just shattered.

"I had a feeling that Sasuke was hijacking all of your previous lessons, completing the tasks by simply summoning your power, so I stepped up the intensity today to something I knew he wouldn't be able to achieve on his own." Tsunade tells her. "He's frustrated because he realizes he'll actually need your help to continue on."

Sakura knows Tsunade is attempting to make her feel somewhat better with the clarification, however, learning that it wasn't her own skills being utilized in the previous lessons makes her upset. Here she thought that they were actually making progress this whole time, that there was a possibility of them becoming a true pair, yet they've achieved nothing. July is creeping around the corner and they're no closer to being able to complete the Soul Baring than when Sakura first arrived here. Her vision starts to cloud over as she feels tears begin to pool in her eyes. None of this is like what she expected. She wants to run away from the academy and never come back.

"Don't cry," Tsunade warns her sternly.

"What am I supposed to do?" Sakura responds, biting back the tears. "I don't understand any of this, I obviously can't compare to Sasuke's abilities; I can't balance him out. I'm sick of feeling so weak and helpless."

"You're not weak," Tsunade interrupts. "I've seen your reservoir of power and it has the potential to make you and Sasuke stronger than you can even image, you just need more training."

"How am I supposed to keep training if Sasuke storms out of our sessions? He doesn't talk to me; he barely even looks at me. How are we supposed to work as partners? I just want to know more about him, but he won't let me in." She's been observant enough to notice the relation between a pairs power and their rapport, the couples that fight more or don't seem to be close are unable to accomplish spells like Sai and Ino. Their bond is so strong and it reflects in their skill, each of them puts the other on a pedestal, their admiration of each other more than apparent.

"I know he seems to be taking this horribly, but losing a Match is incredibly hard, even before the Soul Baring is complete," the Hokage fiddles with a pendant that always hangs around her neck, it's a simple aqua crystal with silver beads framing either side of it. Sakura had noticed the Hokage always wearing it before, but by the way she holds it now, it seems to have a deeper meaning than a simple fashion statement. "I lost my very first partner," she finally states, catching Sakura off guard. "He was murdered."

"How?" Sakura asks before she can even stop herself. She hadn't heard anybody mention this before. Sakura has still been attempting to figure out who Tsunade's match truly is.

"That's a different story for a different time," Tsunade responds, a slight dazed look in her eye as she seems to revisit something in the past. "But moving on," she fixes her attention back on Sakura. "We need to work on your personal training some more," the Hokage sighs, "You need more work on the basics, since your powers emerged so much later in life you're lacking the foundation lessons that the other students receive before it's their turn to face the cards."

"I thought that basics is what I've been learning the past couple of weeks," Sakura thinks of simple spells she has managed to learn so far.

Tsunade begins walking Sakura towards the door of the room. "Personal spells and partner basics are two completely different styles. How committed are you to being a stronger witch?" she asks.

"I don't want to be weak," Sakura replies, new determination etching on her face. If this is her reality, damn it if she is not going to strive to be the best. "I want to blow Sasuke out of the water with my strength. I never want him to be able to look down on me again."

A smirk appears on Tsunade's face at the young girl's words. "Well then, I'll have some extra private lessons added to your schedule where we'll practice together. It won't be the same as with Sasuke, but you'll get a feel of the flow between two magicians. They'll be either very early or very late in the day, and they won't be easy."

Sakura mulls over the offer. She's already stretched thin as it is, but she trusts Tsunade and if this is what she thinks she needs to excel, she'll do it. This is her way to delve into the nitty gritty of her power, to truly unlock the complexities of it. Stronger, that's what she needs to become to challenge Sasuke.

"Thank you, Headmistress," Sakura says with a nod of her head. "I'll do you proud."

With that, Sakura exits the room and begins walking back to her dorm. Since the night in the shower, being alone in the school has made her wary, but for the most part she has grown accustomed to the empty corridors; it is not uncommon to pass only two or three other students when walking across the campus. The silence gives her time to reflect on all that's happened. The thought of Sasuke still causes her face to flush with anger, but the idea of being able to show him up gives her grim sense of satisfaction. Proving him wrong, seeing the look on his face when she masters her power will be well worth the extra lessons. He'll never think of her as useless ever again.

When she gets to the door to her room, she hesitates for a second, remembering Hinata's warning. She debates in her head whether she'd rather face Sasuke or an upset Ino. Ino ends up winning, but just barely. Bracing herself, she swings open the door. Of all things to be met with, a small tidal wave rushes out and knocks Sakura off her feet.

Having fallen awkwardly on her butt, she watches in awe as water flows around her. "Uh, Ino?" She begins, knowing that this is not a good sign. "Ino?" She rises slowly, her frame now soaked with the warm saltwater that originated in her room. Peering her head in, she sees her friend curled in a ball on her bed, large tears pouring down her cheeks the source of all the water.

"Hey, what happened, sweetie?" Sakura pads over the drenched rug and climbs onto the bed, trying to console the distraught witch.

"It's that damn Soul Baring!" She yells, sending a fresh rush of water throughout their room. "I should've known this was going to happen, ever since Shikamaru and Temari did it last week he's been acting strange." An angry scream follows the statement, causing Sakura to flinch.

"I'm sorry," she says lamely, "Where's Sai at?" If anybody could calm her down, he could.

"He left to get ice cream," she sniffs, wiping snot away from her nose. "He should be back soon." She buries her head in a nearby pillow that's already dripping with water. "God, I'm such an idiot. I knew they went all the way during the Baring, but I didn't want to believe it." She gasps in a shaky breath, the thought of her ex-boyfriend being intimate with another girl obviously rubbing salt in the wound. "I know it was dumb to date somebody that was newly Matched to another girl, but he always made it seem like they weren't that close."

Sakura rubs a hand on the distressed girl's back, wishing she had the ability to soothe her with a touch. "He's an asshole."

"Ugh, he is," Ino lays back dramatically, "I can't believe this."

"Knock, knock," Sai's voice echoes from the doorway, a plastic convenience store bag in his hand. At the sight of her Match, a fresh, literal wave of tears rushes from the blond girl's eyes. Sai dodges the mini wave and sits on Ino's other side, placing a bare hand on her arm.

"You can head out, Sakura," he whispers, "I'll clean the room up."

Sakura mouths " _Thank you,"_ before leaving the pair to it. There's not much she can really say now as it seems that Ino just really needs the support of her Match. Sakura stomach dips slightly at the realization that this is how a Match is truly supposed to act. She can't even imagine Sasuke holding her as she cries, laughing with her when she's happy, even just being comfortable in her presence.

Walking down the hallway, she fights back her own tears, for the first time truly realizing what she's missing out on with Sasuke. A Match isn't just about power, it's about having somebody that's there for you throughout everything, good and bad. Wrapping her arms around herself, she tries to fight off the feeling of loneliness gnawing at her.


	6. Seven of Cups

**_Seven of Cups_**

 _This card indicates the need to separate what is real and what is not. Doing so will allow better decision making._

 _Up: searching for purpose, choices, daydreaming_

 _Reversed: disarray, diversion, confusion, lack of purpose_

* * *

Sakura eyes her reflection in the mirror, though she's only been at the academy for about a month now she can already see the changes in her appearance.

Her eyes have dark circles under them, indicating the lack of sleep with her constant training. Peaking beneath the sleeves of her dark shirt are little burns and cuts, scattered across her pale forearms from when she's been careless handling summoning mediums. Her body consists of shaper angles with more even muscle tone from both the physical training and stress that accompanies her new lifestyle. Emerald eyes shine now, the hidden power within her dancing behind her irises, illuminating them. She feels like she's staring at a stranger. She's no longer the naïve high school girl worried about prom and finding a part-time job, so ignorant of the true power the world contains, the true power lurking within her. She's a magician.

A pale hand grabs her shoulder, causing her to jump.

"Sasuke?" she questions as she begins turning around, but instead of being met with dark hair and angry eyes, a woman stands before her.

Sakura has never seen her before, yet the brilliant red hair and glasses are familiar somehow. "You're Karin, aren't you?" she questions. She had seen pictures of her Match's former partner, a girl slightly younger than Sakura herself, an ever-present inquisitive look on her face.

"You'll never live up to my abilities," she whispers, her fingernails digging into Sakura's shoulder. "He'll never be able to see you, without thinking of me." She begins giggling, her nails scraping off Sakura's skin, peeling it down her arm.

Though her body wants to freeze up in horror, she knows she needs to get away. Sakura turns and begins running, not quite sure where she is or where she's going. All the while Karin swoops at her like a bird, clutching more bits of skin within her talons. Screaming Sakura finds herself standing along a room of mirrors, her own body reflected by the hundreds, surrounding her as she tries to get to safety. Karin disappears, but Sakura can't stop now, the room elongates as her feet continue to carry her away from the savage girl, away from Konoha Academy, away from Sasuke, and away from everything else.

Eventually she slows, her body finally giving out from the effort, collapsing to her knees she attempts to catch her breath. She seems to have outrun the mirrors only to find herself in cavern of darkness. Blood trickles down her arms forming a sticky pool beneath her.

"Get up, Sakura."

She freezes at the voice, not wanting to glance up.

"Look at me," it states more firmly now.

Slowly, she lifts her head to see Sasuke standing there, his hand outstretched to help her, no gloves in sight. Hesitantly, she reaches forward a feeling of relief beginning to wash through her. He pulls her to her feet and wraps his arms around her, burying his face within her rose-colored tresses.

"You're safe now," he murmurs, the movement of his lips brushing against her neck with the words. She feels herself let go of the fear, let go of her anger towards him. She senses it through their touch. He's her Match, he doesn't want to fight, let alone hurt her. She surrenders herself to him, her own arms coming up to hold him.

 _Crack!_

Green eyes widen as she feels her ribs split to accommodate Sasuke's arm as it goes wrist deep into her chest, digging inside her body.

Shuddered breaths begin to escape her, "No!" she gasps as she realizes what he's trying to do. "Sasuke, please don't do this."

She wants to fight, to push him away, but all feeling leaves her, her limbs dangling useless beside her as he continues his search within her. Finally, the boy finds what he's looking for, his fingers curling around her beating heart before yanking it from her chest. Pulling it free, he lets her fall to the ground, her hand smacking in a pool of her own blood. The uneven surface below her is odd, not the cold cement she expected. No, instead she finds herself laying on something ridged and warm. Daring to turn her head, she comes face to face with Karin's dead eyes, a matching hole in her own purple-clad chest.

Sasuke's maniac cackles cut through the air like a knife, two beating hearts now resting in his hands.

* * *

 _Gasp._

Sakura chest heaves as panicked breaths wreck through her body. _A dream, it was only a dream_.

She can't help the start that escapes her when she realizes there actually is a hand resting on her shoulder. Bracing herself, she turns to meet the owner, half-worried that she will indeed be met with the fiery red-haired woman. Instead, slate eyes take in her panicked appearance. Her mind instantly races to her nightmare, to seeing her own heart ripped from her chest, but a second glance soothes her shaking body.

"Sai," she exhales slowly, taking in her surroundings. That's right, she had fallen asleep in the library.

With her room being a warzone due to her newly single roommate, Sakura has taken to hiding within the large tower library. Over-stuffed armchairs and a roaring fireplace, along with the infinite spiral of books make the otherwise intimidating room comforting. The high shelves of black wood contain countless tomes. Some with older, more intricate covers and others rather plain and dull looking. The only light shines from the domed, glass ceiling above. Currently, grey clouds can be seen rolling outside as the light tinkling of raindrops makes up an ambient background symphony.

"Are you okay?" The boy asks, concern seeping into his usually flat tone.

"Yeah," she lies easily, the dark nightmare leaving her rattled. "Are you here to take shelter too?"

A small, hesitant smile twists on his lips as he nervously scratches the back of his neck. "There's only so much I can do with the bond," he responds, obviously feeling guilty about not being with Ino. "At this point in time, she needs to work things out on her own."

Sakura nods. While having a partner is great, some things still need to be conquered by the individual.

"You've been such a good friend to her," Sai says as he begins rummaging in his bag, "She's so lucky to have you in her life. I know Ino isn't always the most calming person to be around, so I made you something to say thank you for being there for her."

Sakura blinks, shocked by his words. "Oh Sai," she shuffles in her chair awkwardly, "You didn't have to do that."

"It was no big deal, really."

He seems to have found what he's looking for as he pulls out a piece of parchment and presents it to her. Sakura's breath catches as she realizes what she's looking at. It's a picture of her, but it's more miraculous than any piece of art she's ever seen before. Yes, the charcoal lines expertly capture her pensive expression. The curves of the portrait perfectly displaying her likeness, her chin resting in her hand as she gazes at something in the distance.

But the expert drawing skills aren't what make it incredible. As she takes a second look, Sakura realizes that the picture itself breaths. Her hair moves slightly, as if a breeze is passing over her. Her eyelashes occasionally flutter shut and open again, and her body rises naturally; it's as if she's watching a video rather than staring at a piece of parchment.

"Wow," she says quietly, "this is amazing, Sai."

Sai doesn't say anything back, just gives a shy smile, as if her reaction said it all. "I'm going to go check on Ino."

The young magician turns to exit the library, leaving Sakura to try and collect her composure once again.

Gingerly, she places the incredible masterpiece in her bag. She'll have to hang it once she gets back to her room. She glances at the stacks of books and the scrawled notes on the writing desk she had just been drooling on, trying to remember what she had been in the middle of before falling asleep.

Oh right, her report on the last battle of the Fourth Hokage. She had been assigned an essay on one of the grand historical events that occurred unbeknownst to mortals and magic's role in its resolution. It's not due for a long time, but she figured now was a good a time as any to start. Something about the story when it was told in class all those weeks ago resonated within her. Apparently, even children in the magical world value it as a tale of good versus evil. She's reminded of the memory she accidentally coaxed from Sasuke during their lightbulb lesson. She shakes the thought of her Match from her mind, trying to block out the sounds of his evil laughter as she lay dying.

Chills creep up her spine, but it's time to focus.

First off, the Kyuubi:

 _"A horrifying manifestation of dark power, the Kyuubi is an untamable force wreaking havoc to all in its path."_

 _Well that's… pleasant,_ Sakura acknowledges _._

" _By sacrificing his life as well as the life of his Match, the Fourth was able to vanquish the beast."_

That sounds a bit vague to write a whole report over so Sakura decides to look for other resources on the topic. She flips through the other books, journals, and even scrolls over the ordeal.

" _… the creature was defeated after the sacrifice of the Fourth and his Match."_

 _"… resolution occurred only after the balance of the loss of life…"_

 _"… The Fourth was know for his brave defeat of the Kyuubi resulting in the end of his own life."_

After only finding the same water-downed description of events repeatedly, the pink-haired magician goes in search of another source to answer her ever growing questions _._ Why weren't there more details on such a big moment in magical history? Why wouldn't they give any hint of how the creature was killed? There had to be reference to some sort of spell or potion, anything that would've brought down the beast.

Her mind quickly ponders through question after question as she gazes over the bookshelves once again. She had been through this section multiple times already, but there must be something she missed. She steps on one of the stools and it lifts her higher as if knowing her need for a better vantage point. Reaching the top of the grand bookshelf, she moves around leather bounded monstrosities detailing events in some century or another.

 _Smack!_

She glances down, frustrated that she managed to knock something off the shelf. She wills the wooden stool to descend again so she can retrieve the fallen object. Lifting the rather thin book up, she notices hand scrawled notes peaking out from between the pages. At first she was planning on just ignoring the strange looking book, but something on one of these stray pages catches her eye. An inky black symbol similar to a three-pointed pinwheel lazily spins upon the aged letter paper.

She flips open the books and pulls out the oddity. Sure enough, the ink itself moves slowly, deliberately each curved point making room for the next one in an almost hypnotizing way. She pulls out the paper only to find no other writing on it, just the small symbol at the top, swirling like a kaleidoscope. However, underneath the paper, a word immediately convinces her to take the book back to her desk, " _Kyuubi"._

The plain black cover has no indications of what this book truly is, no title page rests inside the cover, not even a name can be found written anywhere. No wonder she missed this book her first couple of times scouring the shelf, not only is it small – roughly forty pages or so – it's also utterly innocuous.

The first page immediately delves into the story stating a date and giving more details than she could find anywhere else. Even the chance of rain to occur on that day is written out in black and white. She devours the pages quickly, eagerly flipping through them as if hearing the story for the first time. After what seems like at least an hour, she gets to the part she's been waiting for.

 _"Upon discovering what Madara had done, the Fourth's quick thinking allowed him and his Match to formulate a plan. If darkness and rage is what allowed the Kyuubi to manifest in the first place, then by the law of balance, innocence and purity should vanquish it. With much pain and sacrifice Minato and Kushina sealed away the beast in their newborn son, forfeiting their own lives in turn."_

Sakura rereads the last paragraph in the book over and over again. The vital information swirling around in her brain. Not only did the magical world's number one enemy now have a name, Madara, but she's learned that the Fourth sacrificed his entire family to defeat it.

The last thing she sees in the book is another strange symbol, but this one doesn't move on the page like the one that originally caught her eye, instead, a strange buzzing seems to oscillate from it, the noise echoing in her head. She snaps the book shut, feeling as though she's trespassed into something dark, but the symbol is practically burned into her eyelids, a strange sun like shape consisting of a large swirl surrounded by jagged symbols. What could it mean and why would a drawing affect her so much?

She goes to flip back through the book, hoping to find more answers, but when she moves to reach for it, she finds that it's disappeared.

Scrambling on her hands and knees, she begins searching beneath her desk wondering if she accidently knocked it off when she had practically thrown it shut. Surprisingly, the only thing in sight is the smooth black of the wood floors, worn soft with use. Sitting back on her heels, Sakura wonders if she imagined ever finding another book to begin with. Afterall, it wouldn't be the first time today her dreams betrayed her.

* * *

Long fingers hover over a box, filled to the brim with all matter of stones and minerals. It stops over a particularly shiny diamond and plucks it up.

 _Plink_!

The diamond lands within an engraved bowl already containing all matter of herbs, feathers, and other similar rocks. With a brief snap, the contents are illuminated in a bright fire, burning white within the basin.

"Are you making another one of those?" Jiraiya asks, eying the Hokage skeptically.

"Just because you don't like using patens, doesn't mean they aren't useful," Tsunade scolds as she watches her carefully picked ingredients shrivel in the flames.

"And which student are you bestowing upon today?" The older magician rummages through the ingredient chests, his curiosity piqued.

Tsunade doesn't respond simply continues gathering materials for a second paten.

"Look," Jiraiya grabs her hands, securing them in place. Tranquility envelopes the Hokage, her erratic nerves calming at the contact. "I know you've really taken a liking to this Haruno girl, but there's only so much blessing you can do before those two figure it out on their own."

"I know," Tsunade exhales, "their combined power is incredible, and Sakura's control is growing every day, but in terms of connecting with each other," she thinks of their constant bickering during lessons. "They're still behind if they're going to complete the Soul Baring on time."

"Be that as it may, burning a couple rocks isn't going to help them get there faster. You're doing all you can with the extra lessons and what not," his thumb rubs the smooth skin on the back of her hand. "You need to relax."

"I can't let this one die," her hazel eyes plead with Jiraiya, begging him to understand.

"What happened wasn't your fault," his hands move up to cradle her chin. "You have to stop blaming yourself for that."

"A child hasn't died at the academy since…" her voice trails off, her tongue not willing to form the words.

"All we can do is try harder," he leans forward as if to kiss her forehead, but Tsunade moves away, placing the cluttered table between them.

Jiraiya shrugs off the rejection, used to it after all these years. "You know who needs a paten?" He chuckles slightly, "That Yamanaka girl, she's already started three fires in the halls, not mention all the flood damage."

A small, sad smile appears on the Hokage's face. "Please don't leave me again," the whisper is just a breath, her voice cracking with emotion.

The old sage smiles knowing how hard it is for the woman before him to show vulnerability. "I'm not going anywhere."

* * *

"Touch me."

Eyelids fly open at the sound of the echoing voice. With the darkness of the room and the confusion of being woken up, it's difficult for Sasuke to gain his bearings. He opens his mouth to respond but notices the feeling of fabric covering his lips.

A gloved hand is situated over his lips, a body resting on top of his. He tenses, ready to go on the defensive but pauses when his eyes finally focus on a familiar shade of jade just inches from his face. He doesn't relax, his confusion just growing by the second. Voice coming out as an unintelligible muffle, he attempts to say her name through the hand that's still firmly clasped over his mouth.

Sakura doesn't say anything in return, just lifts a finger to her own lips. Too shocked to react, Sasuke just continues to stare at her, absorbing the vulnerable position she has him in, until she finally releases him.

Her chest rests flush against his, her face so close that he can feel her breath. He's hyper aware of her hips pressing against his torso, small thighs pinning each of his arms to either side of him. His mind races, trying to figure out what scenario could have led her to his dorm room in the middle of the night. She leans forward, her pouted lips closing the distance. Frozen in place, he waits, unsure of what she's planning on doing only for her climb off him and stand beside the bed expectantly.

With the newfound freedom, he sits up not sure how to approach this situation. "Sak-"

The hand is back, viridian eyes burning with frustration at his lack of compliance. He nods slightly, trying to portray his understanding of her order for silence.

She turns and opens the door to his room and that's when he notices her peculiar attire. She wears a long-sleeved black dress adorned with lace and a short tulle skirt. Black tights cover her thin legs and the familiar clicking of high heels hitting marble accompanies each of her steps. Even though it's the middle of the night, her attire indicates that she's heading somewhere important like a club, or maybe a funeral.

She looks over her shoulder, a small smile beckoning him to follow before disappearing through the doorway.

He just sits there a moment, taken off guard by the bizarre situation but a gloved hand reappears from the dark hallway, ushering him forward.

He ignores the chills creeping up his spine and enters the corridor only to find it empty. Where could she have gone so quickly? He looks side to side and finds strands of pink turning the corner at the end of the shadowy passageway.

 _Click, click, click_

He follows the sound of her shoes in the darkness, concern beginning to eat at him. What could have possibly gotten into her? Could this have something to do with that figure she saw in the bathroom?

Finding himself in another empty corridor he whirls arounds and hears the undeniable squeak of a door opening.

The intimidating black archway seems out of place in the otherwise white hallways of the school, yet familiarity tugs at the back of Sasuke's mind, like he's been here before. He steps through carefully, not sure as to what could be awaiting him.

Deep red candles flicker in the darkness, tossing eerie shadows around the room and in their center stands Sakura, her back turned to him. He wants to speak but finds that his voice won't come, silenced by the aura in the room. He settles for reaching a hand out to spin her by the shoulder. He expects to be met with the eerie smile from earlier, but instead a look of pure terror consumes Sakura's face.

"Sasuke," she yells, her breathing turning erratic. "You have to help me!" She cries, her gloved hands clutching his shirt. "He's coming for me!" She begins crying, her shoulders shuddering with each sob.

"Who is coming?" he asks, his voice suddenly returning to him. He still isn't sure of what is happening, but the panic his Match is portraying is beginning to worry him.

Sakura can't respond, her crying consuming her and making it difficult to catch her breath.

Sasuke decides to do something he hasn't willingly done in a while in order to get an answer. Removing the gloves that he didn't even realize he had on, he tries to touch her. Her outfit limits his options, so he settles with placing his fingers upon her cheek.

He tries to soothe her violent emotions while searching for the root of her fear, but Sakura's head remains bowed, fingers curled into the fabric of his T-shirt.

"Show me," he states, grasping her more firmly.

Her cries turn to gasps, the same panic contorting her delicate features. Instead of pulling Sasuke towards her, Sakura is now pushing against his chest, trying to get away from him.

Horrified, Sasuke realizes his hands are wrapped around the smooth skin of her throat, constricting her airway. He's not sure when or how he went from holding her cheek to squeezing her neck, but he just knows he can't stop. He watches the fire behind her eyes dim, her mouth still gaping in horror, as he lowers her body to the ground. The movement in her limbs slow, the flailing of her legs and banging on his chest weakening as she loses consciousness.

"Sasuke," she gasps out as her eyelids fluttering, obviously fighting to stay open, "please don't kill me."

Leaping back as if she burned him, Sasuke finds himself hovering over her lifeless form. Her motionless body seems small and frail beneath him, ivory skin practically glowing among the black lace. The soft features of her face give away nothing but innocence, however, her last words hang in the air cutting him like a knife. Kneeling on the cold marble, he lets out a cry of fury, cursing history for repeating itself.


	7. High Priestess

Chapter 7: High Priestess

 _The High Priestess signifies that it's time to listen to your intuition rather than prioritizing your intellect and conscious mind. Trust your instincts instead of overthinking your next steps._

 _Up: Intuition, inner voice, subconscious_

 _Reversed: Lack of center, lost, repressed feelings._

* * *

"Dreams."

The noise level in the classroom descends at the sound of the professor's voice. Sakura settles into her usual spot between Ino and Hinata and begins scribbling the date at the top of her notebook.

"The typical human mind dismisses them as a conjuring of the subconscious," Professor Orochimaru's voice comes out as a purr as shadows dance upon his face from the suspended flames that hover just below the ceiling of the windowless classroom. "However, those attuned to their magic may find that their dreams are a manifestation of it, guiding them to their innermost desires."

"Psh," Ino huffs quietly, "then my inner most desire must be to strip in the courtyard while Temari laughs at me."

Sakura cringes slightly at her roommate's words. The blonde has still been down in the dumps since her breakup but has finally started to attend classes again. Sakura takes it as a sign that she's starting to get over the whole ordeal, even if the more experienced magician just pouts the entire lecture.

"This simple mixture is a bathing recipe meant to evoke clarity from the usual cryptic displays of our subconscious."

Chalkboard letters appear with a wave of the professor's hand. Sakura considers ignoring the scrawled-out words, but with a second thought decides to jot down the spell.

 _Dried lavender, rose petals, bee pollen, milk, opals …_

The moon phase required for the spell is occurring in two nights and they're all mediums that Sakura has easy access to through the school's communal cabinet. She could do it in the ceremonial bathing chamber that's on the top floor, she'll have to make sure it's not reserved though. This fleeting idea quickly becomes reality as she ponders the technicalities as well as her plagued sleep.

It's been about a week since her dream in the library about Sasuke and things have only gotten worse since then. Each night is mostly the same, sometimes Karin makes an appearance, sometimes she doesn't. Sasuke is always there seeming to want to help her but causing her demise in some convoluted way.

To make matters worse, the real Sasuke is acting stranger than ever. Before he would just ignore her outside of lessons, approaching each of the training sessions with an attitude of indifference, but something has shifted. Now she always finds him watching her. It started in summoning class, she had turned to ask Sai about the lesson and in her periphery, she noticed Sasuke observing her every move. She tested the theory by moving the opposite direction towards Hinata, and sure enough, her Match's head turned as well. Even now she can feel the intensity of those captivating eyes on her back.

She thought about questioning his new, strange behavior during one of their lessons, but ever since the lightbulb incident he times his arrivals and departures to match those of whoever is proctoring them that day. It's childish really, they're Soul Baring is scheduled in less than two months and his avoidance of her is not doing them any favors.

Though she wants to understand this boy with the dark past more, a big part of Sakura is still nervous around him. Even though he keeps parts of himself completely closed off when they're doing partner spells, she still gets glimpses of darkness in his magic. Whenever they attempt to merge her veins feel as though they turn to ice and shivers run down her spine. Of course, these instances are few and far between as Sasuke has still yet to allow them to properly unite since the whole "seeing into his childhood" moment.

"Miss Haruno."

Sakura blinks a bit, bringing herself back to reality. Other students have started packing up their bags and the long-haired professor stands in front of her table.

"Sorry Professor," she apologizes, a slight blush appearing at being caught not paying attention.

"You seemed distracted during my lesson, is everything okay?" his genuine concern makes Sakura feel bad for always finding his presence unnerving. None of her encounters with the reputable magician have ever been unpleasant, but there's just something about his eyes, golden with narrow reptilian-like pupils, that unsettles her.

"Everything's fine, I just haven't been sleeping very well." She's the only one remaining in the classroom now, so she doesn't feel as awkward answering the question candidly. "To be honest, this lesson really came at the perfect time."

"Oh?" the professor prompts, his eyebrows raising in surprise.

"It's dreams," she says slowly, "I feel like they're trying to tell me something more, but I keep getting pulled out before I can do anything."

"Well, the spell I shared in class could be a good place to start," he states. "Who knows, you might learn more about your partner as well."

"Trying to get Sasuke to talk to me is like prying teeth," she responds, deflated.

"I think you're making more progress with Mister Uchiha than you realize, just keep at it." With that, the professor gathers up his things and exits the classroom.

Sakura lingers for a moment longer, processing his words. Is she really making progress with Sasuke? He doesn't quite lash out at her in anger anymore, but he's certainly not warm towards her, or even very friendly for that matter. She's getting so tired of this, it's like a constant uphill battle of mental exhaustion.

This reflection helps make up her mind about the spell. She's going to try it, worse comes to worse at least she gets a nice bath out of it.

* * *

"The east coast has been experiencing some unexpected activity lately," the Hokage states, staring into the crystal ball before her. The brilliant colors rippling through it indicate some sort of distress in the area.

"Could it be the well?" Orochimaru asks from across the office where he riffles through an assortment of scrolls.

"I'm not certain, this feels like something different," Tsunade sits back, massaging her temples. If it's not one thing causing problems, it's another.

"You should go and check on it," Jiraiya suggests, he lazes in one of the large armchairs, his feet propped up on Tsunade's desk. "You could use a little time away from the academy."

"I can't," she snaps back, "there's too much for me to do here." She poofs the crystal ball away, glaring at the men in her office.

"I agree with Jiraiya," Orochimaru states, still studying the ancient inscriptions on the roll of parchment in front of him. "It doesn't take your Match to see how stressed you are as of late," his eyes lift to hers, "besides, the beach is supposed to be lovely this time of year."

"Yes," she mutters sarcastically, "cause we all know I'll be lounging at the beach." She reaches for the sake bottle that resides in her desk but pauses. "Maybe you guys are right."

"Of course we are!" Jiraiya exclaims, pushing away from the desk. "We'll take a couple days, three tops, away from the academy and-"

"Uh-uh," Tsunade negates, "If I'm leaving, you have to stay here to watch Sasuke and Sakura. I need details of their progress."

The man shrinks slightly, his hopes of a vacation obviously dashed. "Of course, I'll handle the private sessions with young Uchiha and Haruno. Maybe we all need a new perspective on the predicaments we find ourselves in."

"Fine," the Hokage begins fluttering around her office, causing various supplies to disappear with the wave of her hands. "But I need complete, detailed reports of everything that happens while I'm gone, especially with those two."

"Yes, yes."

The men cast quick glances at each other, pleased to have some of the tension at the academy abated, even if just for a short while.

"Leave it to us."

* * *

When Sakura had first heard of this specific ceremonial chamber, she had dismissed it. After all, how could something make a tub full of water transcend the mundanity of bathing? However, being in this place, she has to admit there's something… sacred about it.

The pale light from the moonbeams streaming in through the high windows mingles with the steam floating through the chamber creating a relaxing sort of ambiance. The tub itself looks like a work of magic, a golden clawfoot masterpiece with a transparent basin. The opals have settled to the bottom of the tub, their iridescent faces glimmering up at her while golden specks of bee pollen and fragrant pieces of florals swirl around her. From the outside somebody would be able to see her nude body cocooned within the water which has turned slightly opaque due to the milk she had poured into it earlier.

Taking a deep breath, she lights the singular lavender colored candle resting upon a teakwood tray. Remembering the process of the ritual Professor Orochimaru lectured over a couple days ago, Sakura takes a sip of the patchouli tea she had brewed earlier. The medicinal smell tingles her nose and she doesn't particularly enjoy the harsh herby flavor, but she lets it linger in her mouth as she lays her head back and closes her eyes.

She focuses on her dreams, on connecting to the deeper meaning within them as she clears her mind of all other thoughts. As it's a new spell to her, Sakura expects it to take some time to enter the dream state, however it only takes a moment for the familiar tingling of magic to engulf her. She has learned to enjoy the odd sensation of her own power through her time at the academy, a subtle movement beneath the skin, almost as if somebody is painting light but long brush strokes within her.

Opening her eyes slowly, Sakura finds the steam in the room has increased ten-fold and the darkness has been overcome by the eerie greyness that accompanies stormy days. A muffled sob echoes deep within the fog. Intrigued, Sakura rises out of the water, careful not to knock over the tray with the candle and cup.

Expecting to slip when her wet feet hit the marble, she braces herself before stepping out. Instead, however, she finds herself standing on freshly cut grass. Rather than the calming fragrances of rose and lavender, the smell of wet earth fills her nostrils. Turning to see what's become of the bathroom, Sakura stares at her own body still resting in the tub. Pink hair lays in a messy top knot, eyes rest closed, and a small dribble of the tea leaks from the corner of her mouth, glistening in the warm light of the still steadily burning candle.

Of all the things the young girl has gone through in her month at the academy, having an out of body experience has the be the strangest. She reaches a hand out to stroke the hair of her unconscious body, but halts as the stifled sob once again resounds in the distance.

Figuring her time in this state is limited, Sakura turns to seek out the noise. Droplets fall on her skin as she pushes deeper into the fog and she realizes that it's raining in this dream. Step after step the moisture laden grass squishes underneath her bare feet as the mournful sound grows louder.

She's about to question how much further she's supposed to go when she stumbles over something protruding from the ground. Looking back, she finds a smooth stone resting amongst the manicured grass, perfectly rectangular and polished so it shines despite the wetness of the rain.

Squatting down, Sakura runs her hand over it as carved out indents appear on the face.

 _Mikoto Uchiha_

Even though she's sure she doesn't know anybody named Mikoto, the name gnaws at her mind, like it's begging her to remember. Obviously, she has to have some relation to Sasuke, but as with all matters, her partner has been quite mute on the subject of his family. She stays there for a moment puzzling over the familiarity, but the softened sound of thunder rumbling in the distance brings her from her thoughts. She takes it as a sign to keep moving.

Continuing, she carefully scans the grass for more markers as her naked body is nipped by the cold of the rain. This time she doesn't walk nearly as long before finding another gravestone. This one looms high, taller than if she stood with both her arms up, the polished stone is dark as night, the lettering harsh unlike the neat script that adorned Mikoto's grave. Jagged and messy, as if cut by inappropriate tools, _Itachi Uchiha_ is spelled out _._

Her stomach flips as she passes through the shadow, unease propelling her forward. There's a dark aura lingering around this place, almost as if the grave itself would swallow up anybody that walks by too closely. Feet running now, Sakura continues her journey, desperate to be out of sight of the stone monstrosity.

She's stopped by the scene of a figure hunched over on the ground. There, on his knees in the wet grass sits Sasuke. His head is bent but a hand reaches out to touch the brown stone in front of him. Sakura doesn't even have to read it to know that his former partner's name is etched into it. Scanning the surroundings, she hopes to get more of a clue as to where she is, but the heavy fog hangs like a curtain around them.

Glancing back down at her forlorn partner she sees the tombstone has transformed. Rising from the grass is an opulent white marble slab, shining with newness, instead of the dead girl's name, her own is etched into it. Realization dawns on her, there's a reason this nightmare is so different from her others, she's inside of one of Sasuke's.

She kneels down next to his crumpled form. His shoulders tremble but no sound leaves his mouth.

"You're scared I'm going to die," she whispers, reaching out a hand to touch him. She expects him to disappear or maybe shake her off, but instead the tension in his shoulders melts as her bare hand rests upon the smooth skin of his bicep. It seems that she's not the only one who's been having issues with sleep.

Turning his head to look at her, Sakura is taken off guard by the defenseless expression on the boy's face. His usually furrowed eyebrows are smooth, the stern lines of his mouth, softened. He appears younger, this way, less intimidating. It's been months and all she's ever seen from him is anger or a mask, void of all emotion. If he's shocked to find her here, he doesn't show it. Rather, pain streaks his face, pain caused by a deep sense of sorrow; it stirs something within her. Those dark eyes, usually cold and dim, shine up at her. She observes little flecks of silver swimming in his irises, a ring of deep blue that she never noticed as anything other than darkness before.

When his hand comes up to cup her cheek she has to stop herself from jumping with a start. His fingers are cool and gentle, the pad of his thumb slightly rough with use. Electricity sparks down her skin, emanating from his touch. She debates saying something but decides against it due to the intensity of his gaze.

The young magician is not quite sure how long they stay like that, it feels like hours before Sasuke finally says something.

"I couldn't do it," his voice is scratchy from his mourning, "I couldn't save you."

"I'm here though," she responds, "I'm right here."

He closes his eyes at her words and withdrawals his hand, causing Sakura to question whether it was the right thing to say. Feeling the ghost of his touch on her cheek, she presses her own hand to it, as if she could keep his warmth there. He begins leaning towards her and Sakura feels her heart skip a beat. Suddenly hyperaware that the dreamworld didn't give her any clothes to wear, Sakura has the urge to cover herself, but instead she just closes her own eyes in anticipation, waiting for his lips to brush against hers, but it never comes. Instead, she feels the warmth of his skin as he presses his forehead against hers.

Watching him with opened eyes, she their breath mingle in the air, visible in their foggy landscape. She expects him to look at her naked body, but his eyes stay locked on hers, their noses brush, lips mere centimeters from each other, if she tilted her head just so…

Fingers trail down her throat, fingers that match the crisscross silvery discoloration on her own, fingers she once dreamed of strangling her. They move to her left collar bone, barely touching her creamy skin, further down they travel and Sakura freezes, becoming rigid as they rest upon the familiar pinkened mark there.

Sasuke pulls back slightly but remains touching the feather shaped scar that rests almost directly above her left nipple. It's big, about the size of her middle finger, but so rarely seen due to the location. Her mind begins traveling elsewhere, to a rainy night filled with broken glass and the smell of gasoline.

"I'm sorry."

This time Sakura does jump as the sound of Sasuke's voice rouses her from the memory she's tried so hard to repress. The harshness in his tone makes Sakura want to comfort him somehow, but as she opens her mouth to speak a shooting pain radiates from her stomach. It takes her a little bit to realize what's happened but looking down she finds the familiar scene of Sasuke murdering her.

With a sharp jerk, he pulls a dripping knife from her body. The force and the pain cause her to fall over on to the grass, her fingers brushing against her own tombstone as blood fills her throat. She wants to ask him why, this dream had felt so different she didn't think it would happen, but only a horrible gargling noise arises from her as she chokes. She feels like she's drowning but instead of water, the thick, metallic liquid that's meant to give her life is now taking it. Her eyes begin to shut and she swears she sees a tear run down her killer's face.

* * *

Gasping, Sakura breaks through the surface of the water, her head having slipped below it during the dream. Luckily, she doesn't dislodge the board that rests on the tub's rim so little more happens than the sloshing sound of water hitting the marble floor. Back in the real world she expects to calm down like she does after all the other dreams, but the room is now dark and cold, her candle little more than a puddle of hard wax, and she can't shake an uneasy feeling of being watched. Quickly she gathers her clothes and runs from the room as her heart hammers within her chest, ignoring the blood dribbling from the corner of her mouth.

* * *

A ragged exhale escapes Sasuke as he darts up in bed. His sheets are wet with the same cold sweat that gleams on his skin. He rests his head in a hand thinking back to the dream. There was something different about it, it was so vivid, felt so real. He thinks of Sakura's naked body lying in front of her tombstone. Crimson blood erupting from her mouth and flowing from the wound he made in her torso. The betrayal in her eyes mirrored a look from the past when a set of scarlet eyes held the same emotion.

He exits his room, unable to handle the emptiness and confinement the small space offers.

* * *

Sakura's bare feet fly down the darkened hallways. Moonbeams light her way as she rushes to get back to her dorm room. Her movements are awkward as she clutches her clothes and shoes to her chest while trying to keep her towel secured.

She's almost to her destination, just a couple more corridors… She screeches to a halt when she sees the figure. He's standing in the middle of the hallway, his hair ruffled from sleep. Before he can ask any questions she turns the opposite direction and takes off again.

"Sakura!"

Sasuke's voice echoes down the hallway but she can't face him right now. That dream felt so different from anything else, usually she wakes up whenever he delivers a killing blow, but she sensed every aspect of her death, practically felt her soul leave her body.

Seeing her Match standing in the darkened hallways just feels too much like the start of another nightmare. She knows she has to get away. Running down a flight of stairs she finds herself in an area of the school she's never been before.

Slowing her steps, she tries to figure out where she's stumbled upon. It's some sort of basement, but not like the one where some of their classrooms reside. No windows line the hallways and instead of marble and dry wall, this whole corridor is made up of cement. Lanterns bolted to the wall glow with flames despite a lack of anything to burn. She's not sure why, but she gets a feeling that there's a reason she's never accidentally wandered down here before. If it wasn't for Sasuke lurking around upstairs she would turn around and leave, but she's still not quite ready to face him.

Guilt washes over her. She knows she can't blame him for what happened in his dream and it's obvious that her dying is something that is worrying him enough that he's having nightmares about her burial. However, the prospect of seeing those eyes, the ones that just moments before she was admiring, in the darkened corridor while she's shaken and vulnerable isn't something she thinks she can face right now. So instead, she continues down the strange passage.

She tries to think about what their similar dreams must mean. There's obviously something more at work here than just her subconscious being stressed about her current situation. If Sasuke's having similar occurrences, it must have to do with their bond. His attitude towards her has never been warm, but Sakura has a hard time believing that he truly wants to cause her harm. It's obvious that he's lost a lot of people in his life, if the names in his nightmare mean anything.

 _Mikoto, Itachi, Karin, me..._

Could they all be people he feels guilty about?

Before she can finish that thought, Sakura steps stop suddenly. Her jaw practically drops at what she sees before her. On the concrete, glowing just below the surface is the sun-like symbol she saw in that mysterious book last week. Before she realizes what she's doing, Sakura moves forward, her scarred fingers outstretched to trace the enchanting crimson swirls. When her skin makes contact, the same buzzing noise that emitted from the book fills her ears as the familiar sensation of her magic flows up her arm to meet it. The symbol begins to pulse, it's glow growing brighter until it's a piercing blue.

The concrete blocks shift beneath it, separating to reveal a large chamber lit with bouncing flames. Against her better judgement, Sakura enters the encompassing cavern. The ceiling is impossibly high, so much so that it stretches out past the light of the woodless torches to the point that Sakura can't be sure that it's even there.

The ceiling, however, is not the thing that draws Sakura's eye, instead it's the large golden cage lining the far wall. Stepping forward, she's surprised to find her, still bare, feet splash in shallow water that engulfs the entire room. It barley covers the top of her foot, but it glows a strange golden color as if it's something more.

She halts there, obviously this place was hidden for a reason, she should turn around and go back to her room. Sasuke's bound to be gone by now. But still… the professors wouldn't keep something dangerous so easily accessible to students. Also, if she were truly meant to not be here, there's no way her magic would have allowed her to open the chamber, right? That symbol has to just be a coincidence. It's probably just another ceremony room, there's no harm in checking it out.

Finding her resolve, Sakura walks closer to the cage, droplets plinking beneath her each time she lifts a foot. Once she stands directly in front of the bars, she realizes how truly massive it is. Black runes pulse on thick golden bars the width of her own body, the powerful energy causing Sakura's hair to stand on end. There doesn't appear to be any type of door, but the openings between the bars are more than big enough for Sakura to easily walk through them if she wanted to.

"Hello?"

Sakura freezes, every muscle in her body tenses as she hears another set of feet moving in the shallow water, this time coming from within the cage.

"Who's there?"

She wants to turn and sneak out, everything in her mind now screaming that she's definitely not supposed to be in here. How stupid could she be to talk herself into entering this obviously forbidden chamber. Her mind races through the possible scenarios, but there's no way to discreetly leave this place. There's nothing in the space between the cage and the entryway and there's no way to make her footsteps quiet with the strange water on the ground. Her heart thuds heavily in her chest as the owner of the voice moves closer to the light.

"A boy?" she can't stop the words escaping her mouth as he finally become visible. He looks about her age, maybe slightly older, with spikey blonde hair. The shadows from the lighting cast a golden glow in his cerulean eyes.

"Hello to you too," he chuckles, an impossibly large smile illuminating his face.

"Why are you down here?" Sakura asks, her fear replaced with confusion. Was this a student?

"I should be asking you that!" He laughs, avoiding the question. "My name's Naruto. And you are?"

Sakura shakes her head slightly, still taken aback by the situation she finds herself in. "Sakura… Sakura Haruno," she answers slowly.

"Fitting!" His smile doesn't waver as he gestures to her pink hair. "Why are you in a towel?"

Sakura remembers the clothes she holds in hand along with the lingering memories of choking on her own blood. "I was taking a bath." It's half-honest, but she's distracted by something, the blonde hair, the blue eyes, that smile… they're so familiar, but more there's more to it than that.

The boy is shirtless, only wearing a pair of black shorts, leaving the sun symbol from before perfectly visible on his stomach. Her mind tries to fit the pieces together, but the conclusion she comes to seems outrageous.

"That symbol," she gestures to his stomach, "I've seen it before, what exactly is it?"

"Oh this?" Naruto scratches the back of his neck awkwardly, "I've had it forever, but I'm not supposed to really talk about it."

"Can I see it?" Sakura asks, getting ready to move between the bars.

"I wouldn't do that if I were –"

Before Naruto can finish his statement, Sakura smacks face first into an invisible wall. Stepping back she rubs her nose, which took the brunt of the force.

"These poles aren't here just for show. See," Naruto rests his hand flat against what appears to be thin air; however, Sakura knows now that it's pressed on the transparent barrier between them.

"You're locked in there?"

"Well… yeah," Naruto's mouth slips into a frown for the first time. "It's not all bad though…"

Somehow, Sakura finds that doubtful.

"You must be a student here. I've never met one of the students before, it's kind of funny you were able to get in here," he continues to babble, but Sakura only half listens as she considers everything she knows.

"You're the Fourth Hokage's son, aren't you?" She finally asks, all the pieces now fitting together perfectly.

Naruto doesn't say anything, but he doesn't deny it either.

"That means the Kyuubi…" her voice trails off, remembering the mysterious book again. "It's sealed inside of you, isn't it?"

The boy nods slowly, his face going dark. "Kurama. He speaks to me."

"Speaks to you?" Sakura says more to herself. Does that mean there's a portion of the Kyuubi that's still active within this boy? Professor Hatake said that the Kyuubi is an embodiment of dark magic, true evil. Naruto doesn't look evil though, he just looks like a kid. Her head whirls with the information, a million questions bursting through. She wants to ask him everything and nothing at once.

"A professor will be down here soon to check on me. You should probably go, you'll get in trouble if they find you," a smaller smile appears on his face, but this one doesn't quite reach his eyes, as if he's sad to be sending Sakura away.

"Wait," she interjects, not liking the somber tone of his voice. "Can I visit you again?"

"I would like that, but I don't know if you should," he hesitates.

"Please," she begs, "I would love to talk to you again."

She's not sure if it's the obvious loneliness this boy has felt for his whole life or something else, but for some miraculous reason he says yes. With a promise to be back soon, Sakura leaves the chamber, watching the stones reposition themselves back together and the curious seal fading away before tracing her steps back to her dorm. While she knows this has to be one of the many secrets Konoha Academy holds, one she could get in trouble for investigating, the mystery, not to mention the friendliness, surrounding that boy resonates within her. As if her magic needed her to find him.

Naruto has some sort of role to play in her life, she just needs to figure out what. She smiles slightly, the earlier horrors from the bath almost forgotten as she eventually reaches her room.


End file.
